RUSSIA: The Case of Aleksandr Poteyev
Aleksandr Poteyev’s story is one of the most intriguing in the world of espionage. As a former Russian intelligence officer, his decision to defect to the United States and expose a major Russian spy network in America sent shockwaves through the intelligence community. Poteyev's actions not only brought a covert operation to light but also sparked intense debate about loyalty, betrayal, and the complexities of espionage.
In this post, we’ll delve into his life and the remarkable events that defined his career.
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| Aleksandr Poteyev in Kabul, date unknown. |
Aleksandr Poteyev was born on March 7, 1952, in Brest, Belarus. His father, Nikolai Pavlovich, was a Hero of the USSR in the Second World War, having destroyed nine German tanks. One could say that the military was in Poteyev's blood.
During the 1970s, Aleksandr met his wife, Marina. Both were natives of Brest, and she was a year older than him. In 1979, they had their first child, a daughter named Margarita. That same year, he completed his KGB training.
Aleksandr studied at the Higher KGB course in Minsk, the capital of Belarus. He graduated from the "Advanced Officer Perfectioning Course" (Курсы Усовершенствования Офицерского Состава, KYOS), designed to train elite spies. The training was very challenging and rigorous, with equally high entry criteria. Candidates were required to have two college degrees and an exceptional level of physical fitness, due to the physically demanding nature of the training, similar to Spetsnaz training. After graduating, Poteyev moved to Moscow to begin his career.
In the 1980s, Aleksandr was deployed to Afghanistan, where he led several daring missions. He was part of the elite Zenith Group, composed of KGB and Soviet Army intelligence officers. Their mission was to storm the Tajbeg Presidential Palace and establish a pro-Moscow regime. On December 1979, they executed this operation while disguised as Afghan soldiers.
After his tour in Afghanistan, Poteyev graduated from the Red Banner Institute of the KGB. He then joined the First Main Directorate of the KGB, which handled foreign intelligence. In 1982, his son Vladimir was born.
In the 1990s, Poteyev was assigned to New York, in the United States. Like many "legal" spies, he worked under the guise of an employee of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. During this time, he also traveled to various countries, including Mexico and Chile, as part of his "job."
WORKING FOR THE SVR AND MOVING TO USA
In 2000, Aleksandr Poteyev was promoted to deputy head of a department under Directorate "S" of the SVR, the unit responsible for overseeing the illegal agents program in the United States. This program involved placing deep-cover Russian agents—often living under false identities—in foreign countries, particularly the United States. These agents, known as "illegals," were trained to blend into society while gathering intelligence for the Kremlin. Poteyev's career in the SVR placed him at the center of this covert operation, providing him with deep insight into the activities of Russian spies embedded in American life. He also held the rank of colonel, a high and trusted position within the spy organization.
Some sources suggest that Poteyev began attracting the attention of his colleagues as early as 2001. His daughter, Margarita, was a student at the International University in Moscow and was invited to work in the Moscow office of the American Councils for International Education. After a year as an intern, she was offered a job in the United States. In 2003, the Poteyevs' Moscow residence was broken into while his wife, Marina, and son, Vladimir, were present. This incident frightened them so much that they soon moved to the United States.
The Russian agency suspects that Aleksandr began working as a double agent for the Americans shortly after his daughter moved to the United States. The motive for Poteyev's betrayal was believed to be financial. His wife and daughter enjoyed the American lifestyle but felt they lacked the money to sustain it as they wished. It is also suspected that Margarita was working with the CIA alongside her father, and that Vladimir was involved as well. In 2005, Vladimir secured a job at JSC Rosoboronexport, Russia's sole state intermediary agency for defense-related exports and imports.
After receiving information from Poteyev, the FBI immediately began surveillance of Russian agents in the United States. The operation was conducted over an extended period. The Americans supplied the Russian spies with false information, which they then relayed to Moscow. The FBI was also aware of all newly arrived illegal agents. During this time, Poteyev purchased several properties in the United States to house the new arrivals, and a large amount of money accumulated in his bank account.
A MOLE IN THE SVR
In 2010, the SVR was aware that a high-ranking "mole" was operating within their organization. However, they could not determine who it was. There were rumors that the Russian agency would force everyone in the "S" department to undergo a lie detector test, which they believed would help them identify the traitor. Aleksandr Poteyev was also aware of this and began making preparations. First, he sent his son, Vladimir, to the USA.
In June 2010, Poteyev arranged a trip to visit relatives in Belarus. He requested leave from his work and, from Belarus, traveled to Ukraine and Germany, eventually making his way to the United States. At that time, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev was visiting America on a diplomatic trip. Shortly after Medvedev's departure, the United States moved to arrest ten Russian illegal agents, including the famous redhead, Anna Chapman. These agents were later exchanged for four individuals suspected in Russia of spying for the United States and Great Britain, one of whom was Sergei Skripal.
THE AFTERMATH OF THE DEFECTION
Poteyev was tried in absentia in a closed-door trial. He was charged under Articles 275 (high treason) and 338 (desertion) of the Russian Criminal Code. The case was reviewed by a panel of three judges, along with a prosecutor representing the Prosecutor General's Office. Aleksandr Poteyev was defended by a court-appointed lawyer. The trial took place at the Moscow Regional Court, where witnesses were questioned on the matter. If found guilty, Poteyev faced up to 20 years in prison.
In addition to the trial, the SVR revised its policies to better protect against future betrayals. An investigation was conducted into employees and their relatives who owned real estate abroad, with anyone possessing foreign property immediately coming under suspicion. Moreover, a temporary ban was imposed on employees and their families from vacationing abroad until all investigations were completed. "The consequences of Poteyev's escape will be felt for a long time, and the agent network in the US has to be urgently rebuilt. People have to be removed from harm's way, and relations with some have been forced to be 'frozen' for an indefinite period," a colleague of Poteyev in the SVR was quoted as saying at the time.
It was also discovered that Poteyev had provided the Americans with information about U.S. agents working as moles within the Russian intelligence community. Although his knowledge was fragmented, he was still able to reveal their pseudonyms and the departments and organizations where they worked. As a result of this information, the United States began its own investigations into spies within various defense organizations, including the National Security Agency, the Defense Intelligence Agency, and several units of the Department of Defense.
At the end of his trial in 2011, Poteyev was found guilty and sentenced to 25 years in prison. His actions were considered a grave embarrassment for Russian intelligence, exposing vulnerabilities within the SVR’s operations and raising concerns about the effectiveness of its recruitment and training methods. He was also stripped of all titles and awards.
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| He was trialed in absentia and sentenced to 25 years in prison |
After his defection, Poteyev lived in hiding in the USA. In 2016, it was reported through Interfax that he had died. The agency cited sources but did not disclose who they were, nor did they specify how he had passed away. However, BBC journalist Mark Urban wrote in his book The Skripal Files that Poteyev was actually alive. According to Urban, the report of Poteyev's death was a Russian disinformation operation intended to lure him out of hiding so that he might contact his relatives. The BBC also claimed that in 2014, there was a plot organized by Russian intelligence services to assassinate him.
BuzzFeed journalists also found evidence suggesting that Poteyev was still alive. They discovered his name in a public database, with the same date of birth. They traced his possible residences in Massachusetts, Arizona, and Virginia during his time in the USA. In 2016, reporters attempted to speak with a person named Aleksandr Poteyev living in Florida. When they visited his apartment, they were repeatedly refused entry.
ANOTHER ASSASIONATION PLOT
In 2020, it was reported that the Russians attempted to kill Poteyev again. They coerced a Mexican doctor named Hector Alejandro Cabrera Fuentes to carry out the task. The SVR leveraged kompromat against Fuentes, including evidence of his bigamous marriage. Fuentes led a double life, living in Oaxaca with his Mexican wife while also maintaining a household in Germany with his Russian wife and their two daughters. Fuentes had earned his doctorate from the University of Giessen, Germany, and had previously studied microbiology in Kazan, Russia.
After a trip to visit family in Russia, Fuentes's Russian wife was detained and not allowed to return to Germany. Russian authorities told Fuentes that he could help his family by doing them a favor.
Under an assumed name, Fuentes rented an apartment north of Miami Beach. In February 2020, during a trip to Moscow, he was instructed on where to find the target's vehicle. He was told not to take any photos or videos. Later, Fuentes and his wife tailgated another resident of the complex to try to gain access but were stopped by security.
Despite this, his wife managed to take a picture of Poteyev's license plate before they were told to leave. Two days later, they were detained at the U.S.-Mexican border by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Agents searched their phones and found the picture of the license plate and vehicle. Hector Fuentes confessed everything to federal investigators, unaware of the significance of his mission. He pleaded guilty in February 2022 and was sentenced to four years in a U.S. federal prison. He is scheduled for release in 2026 and will be deported directly to Mexico.
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| Hector Alejandro Cabrera Fuentes |
Aleksandr Poteyev’s story is a fascinating chapter in the world of international espionage. It sheds light on the tough choices that spies have to make, often caught between their duties and their personal morals. Poteyev’s decisions didn’t just change his own life—they sent ripples through the entire intelligence community, highlighting the tricky balance between loyalty and betrayal in the name of national security.
His story is a vivid reminder of how quickly the line between friend and enemy can blur in the secretive world of espionage.
Resources
- Meduza - The agent who turned in Anna Chapman and other illegals to the Americans was declared dead two years ago. In fact, he lives in the US: Buzzfeed
- The New York Post - Ex-officer convicted of betraying Russian spy ring
- US Office of Public Affairs - Man Who Acted as Russian Agent Sentenced to Federal Prison Term
- RFE/RL - The Hunt For A Russian Spy: How The FSB Used A Mexican Man To Target A Defector In Miami
- Buzzfeed - This Russian Double Agent Is A Lot Less Dead Than He Seemed
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