Two men and a woman have been arrested on suspicion of spying for Russia.

A 41-year-old man and 35-year-old woman were arrested at an address in Grays while a 46-year-old man was arrested at a separate address in the town, the Metropolitan Police said.

All three were arrested on suspicion of assisting a foreign intelligence service, contrary to section 3 of the National Security Act (NSA), 2023.

They were taken to a police station in London and have since been released on bail with conditions while investigations continue.

Scotland Yard said it would not disclose the nationalities of those involved.

Commander Dominic Murphy, Head of the Counter Terrorism Command, said: ‘Through our recent national security casework, we’re seeing an increasing number of who we would describe as ‘proxies’ being recruited by foreign intelligence services.

‘Indeed, two young British men are awaiting sentencing after they were recruited by the Wagner Group – effectively the Russian state – to carry out an arson at Ukrainian-linked warehouse.

‘They are facing potentially lengthy custodial sentences, although, to be clear, today’s arrests are in no way connected to that investigation.

‘But anyone who might be contacted by and tempted into carrying out criminal activity on behalf of a foreign state here in the UK should think again. This kind of activity will be investigated and anyone found to be involved can expect to be prosecuted and there are potentially very serious consequences for those who are convicted.’

Grays is the largest town in Thurrock, approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) east of the M25 motorway, and home to over 99,000 people.