The three cases of alleged Russian spies operating around the world with Brazilian identity rang the alarm in the Federal Police in 2022 and raised suspicion of the systematic use of the country to train illegal agents by the Russian government.
Serguei Tcherkasov, detained in the Netherlands and sent to Brazil in May, Mikhail Mikushin, detained in Norway in October, and the alleged spy appointed by Greek authorities by the surname Chmirev used their Brazilian identity to travel the world working for Russian intelligence services, according to investigations opened by countries.
Through the falsification of documents, they became Viktor Muller Ferreira, José Assis Giammaria, and Gehard Daniel Campos Wittich. For investigators, the ease of obtaining a birth certificate in Brazil and, subsequently, other documents, including a passport is an attractive point for spy agencies.
In addition, the good receptivity of the Brazilian passport in the world is pointed out as an important factor for the increase in the number of cases of illegal spies whose identities were "heated up" in Brazil.
Translated by Cassy Dias