FBI busts Russian spy ring trying to gather intelligence on US sanctions against Russia

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has reportedly charged three men who it accused of spying for Russia and trying to recruit sources in New York City.

U.S. prosecutors said that 39-year-old Evgeny Buryakov worked for an alleged Russian spy ring that included two other people named, Igor Sporyshev and Victor Podobnyy, who no longer live in the U.S., reported the BBC.

Buryakov, who worked at Russian bank in Manhattan, has been accused of attempting to gather intelligence about potential U.S. sanctions against Russian banks and U.S. efforts to create alternative energy resources.

He is scheduled to appear in court later on Monday.

The FBI also accused Buryakov of recruiting several Americans to spy for Russia, including employees of major companies and several young women "with ties to a major university in New York."

The other two defendants, Sporyshev and Podobnyy, who held official positions as representatives of the Russian government in the U.S., were accused of working with Buryakov since 2012 in "passing on information and developing other recruits."

The probe was an offshoot of a 2010 case that saw 10 "deep cover" agents being arrested and deported in a spy swap with Russia.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said that the charges showed the nation's "firm commitment" to combat attempts by covert agents to gather intelligence illegally and recruit spies within the U.S.