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Russia's FSB filmed the staged 'arrest' of a Romanian raised in England MONTHS after he was already in custody

David Adrian Kercso, 23, was living in Reading and working for an electronics recycling firm when he met a woman named Valeria online in late 2023. His family says he was lured to the Black Sea coast in August 2024 to be with her. In March he was jailed for 15 years for passing details of Sochi military sites to Ukraine, which he denies. He also alleges he was tortured in custody.

Abkhazian separatists first released footage of Kercso in their custody before he appeared in a Russian court.

The FSB clip, shot in a Sochi park in mid-April, shows agents pinning him down.

'I told him to not go there because it's very dangerous,' a relative recalled.

MoreThe IndependentFrom Reading to Russia: How a Romanian’s love affair across Europe ended in a Russian jail for spyingNY PostRomanian man David Adrian Kercso sentenced to 15 years in Russian prison for spying — but FSB arrest video was staged: reportReutersLove affair to staged arrest: how a Romanian from England was jailed in Russia as a spyOutlook IndiaRussia’s ‘Spy Arrest’ Video Raises Questions Over Romanian’s 15-Year Sentence - Outlook IndiaInformat.roReuters: The footage of the arrest of Romanian national David Adrian Kercso in Russia was allegedly staged on Monday after his detention - Informat.roThe TelegraphThe off-grid wanderer accused of being a mercenary for Ukraine
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