AMSTERDAM: The Dutch Intelligence Service has uncovered a Russian military agent attempting to use a false identity to infiltrate the International Criminal Court (ICC) which is investigating accusations of war crimes in Ukraine. Sergey Vladimirovich Cherkasov created an elaborate cover story dating back years to attempt to enter the Netherlands as a Brazilian national for an internship at the Hague-based ICC in April, the agency’s head told media on Thursday.
“This was a long-term, multi-year GRU operation that cost a lot of time, energy and money,” said Dutch intelligence agency chief Erik Akerboom, using the acronym for Russia’s military intelligence service. No GRU representative could be immediately reached for comment, though President Vladimir Putin’s government has in the past frequently denied spying accusations as a Western smear campaign against Moscow. The Dutch General Intelligence and Security Service (AIVD) said in a statement that the man, who went by the alias Viktor Muller Ferreira, was picked up at a Dutch airport.
