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| Mexican Citizen Accused of Spying for Russians in the U.S. | Mexican Citizen Accused of Spying for Russians in the U.S. |
| (about 4 hours later) | |
| Federal officials have arrested a Mexican citizen for allegedly acting on behalf of a Russian agent who recruited him to collect information about the U.S. government and met repeatedly with him in Moscow. | Federal officials have arrested a Mexican citizen for allegedly acting on behalf of a Russian agent who recruited him to collect information about the U.S. government and met repeatedly with him in Moscow. |
| Hector Alejandro Cabrera Fuentes and his wife were about to board a plane back to their native Mexico from Miami on Sunday, when a customs official asked to inspect their phones. | Hector Alejandro Cabrera Fuentes and his wife were about to board a plane back to their native Mexico from Miami on Sunday, when a customs official asked to inspect their phones. |
| The official looked in a file of recently deleted images on the phone of Mr. Fuentes’s wife, and found a close-up photograph of a license plate. The plate belonged to the vehicle of a U.S. government source, federal prosecutors said in a statement. | The official looked in a file of recently deleted images on the phone of Mr. Fuentes’s wife, and found a close-up photograph of a license plate. The plate belonged to the vehicle of a U.S. government source, federal prosecutors said in a statement. |
| Mr. Fuentes admitted to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection that he had told his wife, who was not named in the statement, to take the picture. | Mr. Fuentes admitted to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection that he had told his wife, who was not named in the statement, to take the picture. |
| It turned out, federal prosecutors said, that Mr. Fuentes was acting on behalf of a Russian government official who had recruited him in 2019 to rent property in Miami-Dade County and gather information. | It turned out, federal prosecutors said, that Mr. Fuentes was acting on behalf of a Russian government official who had recruited him in 2019 to rent property in Miami-Dade County and gather information. |
| “The Russian official told Fuentes not to rent the apartment in Fuentes’s own name and not to tell his family about their meetings,” according to a statement from the Department of Justice. Mr. Fuentes met with the Russian official twice in Moscow, it said. | “The Russian official told Fuentes not to rent the apartment in Fuentes’s own name and not to tell his family about their meetings,” according to a statement from the Department of Justice. Mr. Fuentes met with the Russian official twice in Moscow, it said. |
| During the second meeting this month, the official gave Mr. Fuentes a physical description of a U.S. government source’s vehicle. | During the second meeting this month, the official gave Mr. Fuentes a physical description of a U.S. government source’s vehicle. |
| The Russian official “told Fuentes to locate the car, obtain the source’s vehicle license plate number, and note the physical location of the source’s vehicle,” according to the statement. | The Russian official “told Fuentes to locate the car, obtain the source’s vehicle license plate number, and note the physical location of the source’s vehicle,” according to the statement. |
| The two were supposed to meet again around April or May so that Mr. Fuentes could give him the information, officials said in the statement. | The two were supposed to meet again around April or May so that Mr. Fuentes could give him the information, officials said in the statement. |
| Federal officials said Mr. Fuentes and his wife rented a car, and on Friday they followed the U.S. source home. | Federal officials said Mr. Fuentes and his wife rented a car, and on Friday they followed the U.S. source home. |
| A security guard on the premises became suspicious of the couple because the rental car had tailgated another vehicle to get inside the building complex. | A security guard on the premises became suspicious of the couple because the rental car had tailgated another vehicle to get inside the building complex. |
| As the guard approached Mr. Fuentes, his wife got out of the car and snapped a photo of the government source’s vehicle, federal officials said. | As the guard approached Mr. Fuentes, his wife got out of the car and snapped a photo of the government source’s vehicle, federal officials said. |
| The guard asked the couple what they were doing there, and Mr. Fuentes said they were visiting someone at the building. | The guard asked the couple what they were doing there, and Mr. Fuentes said they were visiting someone at the building. |
| “Security did not recognize the person as living there and told Fuentes to leave the premises,” federal officials said. | “Security did not recognize the person as living there and told Fuentes to leave the premises,” federal officials said. |
| When Mr. Fuentes was questioned about the photo two days later at the airport, he admitted he had been directed by a Russian government official to conduct the operation, the officials said. | When Mr. Fuentes was questioned about the photo two days later at the airport, he admitted he had been directed by a Russian government official to conduct the operation, the officials said. |
| Mr. Fuentes has been charged with acting on behalf of a foreign agent without notifying the attorney general. He has also been charged with conspiracy to act on behalf of a foreign agent. | Mr. Fuentes has been charged with acting on behalf of a foreign agent without notifying the attorney general. He has also been charged with conspiracy to act on behalf of a foreign agent. |
| At a hearing in Miami federal court on Tuesday, Mr. Fuentes said he had a variety of jobs, including one as a researcher at the National University of Singapore, where he earned $7,500 a month, according to The Miami Herald. | At a hearing in Miami federal court on Tuesday, Mr. Fuentes said he had a variety of jobs, including one as a researcher at the National University of Singapore, where he earned $7,500 a month, according to The Miami Herald. |
| Mr. Fuentes also told a magistrate judge he earned $5,000 a month from an Israeli company based in Germany and had about $100,000 in bank accounts in Mexico, Singapore and the United States, according to the newspaper. | Mr. Fuentes also told a magistrate judge he earned $5,000 a month from an Israeli company based in Germany and had about $100,000 in bank accounts in Mexico, Singapore and the United States, according to the newspaper. |
| Mr. Fuentes is listed on the National University of Singapore website as one of the lead researchers of a 2016 study on cardiovascular disease.In 2015, he gave a presentation at a conference hosted by the European Society of Cardiology in London. In his bio, Mr. Fuentes was described as a graduate of Kazan University in Russia, where he obtained a degree in molecular biology and microbiology. | |
| He will be arraigned on March 3 in Miami federal court, federal officials said. | He will be arraigned on March 3 in Miami federal court, federal officials said. |