By Jon Schuppe
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN — Federal authorities arrested eight people Monday for allegedly acting as “deep cover” Russian spies who communicated on secret wireless networks and tried to infiltrate American “policy-making circles,” according to court documents filed in Manhattan.
Among those arrested were a couple who lived in Montclair, N.J., another two who were arrested in Yonkers, and a woman arrested in Manhattan. Others were arrested in the Washington D.C. area, authorities said.
A years-long FBI investigation found that they were all part of a Russian spy program that trained members in covert communications, “invisible writing” and the use of cover professions, according to complaints filed in federal court in Manhattan.
The goal was to become so “Americanized” that they could recruit or infiltrate American policy-making circles according to the complaints.
The complaints detail how undercover federal agents watched and set up meetings with the alleged spies. Some of the activity took place in coffee shops and a bookstore in Manhattan, and a pharmacy and Verizon store in Brooklyn.
Two additional people were arrested for taking part in the spy program, and an 11th person remains at large, federal agents said.
All were charged with acting as agents for a foreign government without notifying the US Attorney General. Nine of those arrested are also charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering.