Three men arrested on suspicion of spying for Russia

Three people were arrested on suspicion of aiding Russia’s intelligence service.

The Metropolitan Police said three men, aged 44, 45 and 48, were arrested by Counter Terrorism Police detectives at addresses in west and central London on Thursday.

They were detained under Section 3 of the National Security Act, which covers conduct that would “materially assist a foreign intelligence service in carrying out activities relating to the United Kingdom”.

A person convicted under Part 3 may be sentenced to a maximum of 14 years’ imprisonment, a fine, or both.

The men are currently under police guard at a station in London, police added.

In addition to addresses in London, searches are also being carried out at another address in the west of the city.

“We are seeing an increasing number of what we describe as ‘proxies’ being recruited by foreign intelligence services, and these arrests are directly linked to our ongoing efforts to disrupt such activity,” said Commander Dominic Murphy, head of London’s Counter Terrorism Police.

“Anyone in the UK who may be contacted and encouraged to carry out criminal activity on behalf of a foreign state should think again.

“Such activities will be investigated and anyone found to be involved can expect to be prosecuted, with potentially very serious consequences for those convicted.”