Kathrine Frich
Their elaborate ruse included a fully staged wedding at a Rio de Janeiro registry office.
Their elaborate ruse included a fully staged wedding at a Rio de Janeiro registry office.
The Perfect Spy Cover
A Russian couple, operating under the aliases Manuel and Adriana Pereira, built convincing Brazilian and Portuguese identities over several years.
Their mission was Infiltrate the EU as legitimate citizens using perfectly fabricated life stories, marriages, and official paperwork.
Wedding Bells, False Papers
Their elaborate ruse included a fully staged wedding at a Rio de Janeiro registry office.
There, they presented forged documents identifying themselves as native Brazilians.
Their carefully planned union laid the groundwork for Portuguese citizenship applications.
Fake Roots, Real Documents
To become a citizen of Portugal, “Manuel” claimed to be the son of a Portuguese national, presenting a fabricated paternity acknowledgment document.
Authorities later learned this man, Camilo Pereira, had no known connection to the Russian operative.
How a Spy Becomes Portuguese
With a false Brazilian identity and a staged Portuguese lineage, the spy known as “Manuel” obtained his Portuguese birth certificate in 2018.
The next step: get his “wife” the same EU citizenship through marriage. and it worked.
Spies Living the Good Life in Porto
The pair rented a flat in Bonfim, Porto, and repeatedly entered and exited Portugal, using their fake identities freely.
By 2019, both had obtained Portuguese citizenship and were blending seamlessly into EU society.
Cracks Emerge After ICC Spy Bust
Their exposure began after a separate Russian spy was caught trying to infiltrate the International Criminal Court.
That arrest tipped off Western intelligence about a larger network, including the Pereira couple.
Portuguese Intel Steps In
Portugal’s SIS (Security and Intelligence Service) quietly revoked their documents and alerted Russian authorities.
An internal investigation began to determine how the couple managed to pass citizenship checks unnoticed.