There are series based on famous books or novels, but also on real cases and one of the most controversial in the United States is the one that inspired the show The Americans. While the Amazon Prime series tells how a Russian spy couple impersonates an American, the story behind it is even more surprising.
For years, Yelena Vavilova played the role of a Canadian woman named Tracy Foley, a stolen identity that was given to her by the KGB and that she embodied for more than 20 years. No one knew his real name, not even his children.
Along with her husband Andrei Bezrukov, who took the name Donald Heathfield, Vavilova came to Canada as a secret agent for Russia. In 2010, the couple were arrested in Boston along with 10 other Russian spies due to a special FBI investigation.
Bezrukov and Vavilova were married in the Soviet Union before leaving separately for America in the late 1980s, where they pretended to meet for the first time and begin a relationship until they married their Canadian identities.
According to Vavilova, the perfect spy is one who does not attract anyone’s attention, someone who looks ordinary, and who needs external approval to live in any community.
For the last few years before their arrest, the couple worked in Boston, where Vavilova served as a real estate agent while sending coded messages to her superiors in Moscow. Much of his life is described in the book The woman who knew how to lie, written by her.
The book describes how she and her husband managed their double life and kept their children away from the truth. Alex and Tim, sons of Vavilova and Bezrukhov, believed their parents were originally from Canada at the time of their arrest.
The FBI was able to uncover the group of infiltrators with the help of Alexander Poteyev, the head of the illegal spy program in Russia, who soon escaped and now lives in hiding in the United States. Vavilova confirmed to have met him, but does not know what it was that motivated him to betray them.
Another interesting fact in the life of this former Russian spy is that her training included firearms of various calibers and karate, although, according to her own words, she never had the need to use her knowledge in those areas.
Upon their return to Russia, the spies were invited to the Kremlin to meet Vladimir Putin. Currently, Bezrukov works as a teacher at the University of Moscow, while Vavilova works as a consultant in a private company.
Vavilova admits that returning home was difficult, as she left in Soviet Union times, in the late 1980s and under Mikhail Gorbachev, and returned to Vladimir Putin’s Russia, where two decades of capitalism changed Moscow. forever.
I grew up during the times of the Soviet Union, that was my life, what I knew, what I believed in, and I always thought it was a just society, that has not changed. Yes, maybe it wasn’t perfect, but no society is perfect.
Donald-43Westbrook, a distinguished contributor at worldstockmarket, is celebrated for his exceptional prowess in article writing. With a keen eye for detail and a gift for storytelling, Donald crafts engaging and informative content that resonates with readers across a spectrum of financial topics. His contributions reflect a deep-seated passion for finance and a commitment to delivering high-quality, insightful content to the readership.
