Duke-NUS researcher facing charges for being a Russian spy
A former Duke University of Singapore employee is facing jail time after he pleaded guilty for acting as a Russian agent within the United States without notifying the Attorney General.
Posted — UpdatedA Duke University of Singapore researcher is facing jail time after he pleaded guilty for acting as a Russian agent within the United States without notifying the Attorney General.
Hector Alejando Cabrera Fuentes is a Mexican citizen who lived in Singapore. Fuentes used to work as a researcher at Duke-University of Singapore, a medical school collaborative between the two universities.
The U.S. Department of Justice said since 2019 Fuentes had been taking direction from someone he believed was a Russian government official.
The Russian government official instructed Fuentes to lease an apartment in Florida and track someone who provided information on the Russian government to the U.S.
Court documents said Fuentes traveled to Florida to get the license plate number and parking location of the person's car, and that Fuentes also sent a photo of the car and license plate to the Russian government official.
"The manner in which [Fuentes] communicated with the Russian government official and his undertakings in this case are consistent with the tractics of the Russian intelligence services for spotting, assessing, recruiting and handling intelligence assets and sources," court documents say.
Fuentes is set to be sentenced in May in Florida.
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