Russian bank explains hiring of spy Anna Chapman

MOSCOW – Russian spy Anna Chapman, who the FBI says used her Internet savvy for her undercover work in New York, has found a new use for her skills at a Moscow bank.

FondServisBank, which works with Russian companies in the aerospace industry, said Monday that it has hired Chapman to bring innovation to its information technologies.The Moscow-based bank issued the statement to explain Chapman’s sudden appearance last week at the remote Baikonur cosmodrome for the launch of Russian rocket carrying a Russian-American crew into space.An official with Russia’s space agency, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Associated Press that Chapman was at Baikonur as an adviser to the president of FondServisBank, but until Monday there had been no confirmation from the bank.With her flaming red hair and penchant for posting sultry photos of herself on social networking sites, the 28-year-old Chapman was the pin-up girl for the 10 sleeper spies who were arrested in the United States this summer and then sent back to Russia in a spy swap.She has avoided the media since her return, so when she showed up at the launch site late on Thursday it caused a sensation. She was wearing a bright red pea coat, which proved less than ideal attire for slipping through the crowd unnoticed.Chapman refused to answer any questions before being hustled away by a burly man, but a photograph of her in her scarlet coat made the national television news and the front page of Russia’s best-selling newspaper. – Nampa-AP