10 Apr 2021 / 09:00 H.
(Adds lawyer s comments)
By Crispian Balmer
ROME, April 1 (Reuters) - An Italian navy captain caught allegedly passing secret documents to a Russian military attache in return for cash was hard-up and struggling to provide for his four children, his wife has told an Italian newspaper.
Walter Biot, 54, was arrested on Tuesday in a Rome carpark moments after he was seen receiving 5,000 euros ($5,900) from the Russian official in return for information contained on a USB key, a police source said.
Italy, which has traditionally enjoyed better relations with Moscow than many other Western states, immediately expelled two Russian diplomats in retaliation and denounced the alleged espionage as a hostile act .