Who is Anna Chapman, when was the Russian spy swapped with poisoned Sergei Skripal and where is she now?

YOU would be forgiven for thinking Scarlett Johansson’s character in the Avengers franchise was modelled on Russian spy Anna Chapman.

The glamorous redhead, 36, is considered a hero in her native Russia… but who is she and which nation’s men does she think are the easiest to seduce? Here’s what we know…

Who is Anna Chapman?

Born in Volograd, Anna Chapman is a Russian intelligence agent and model who was arrested in the US as part of the top secret Illegals Program (which we will discuss later).

Dubbed Russia’s “most glamorous secret agent”, she was one of ten Russian spies exchanged for poisoned MI6 agent Sergei Skripal in July 2010.

She was among a group of spooks who tried to blend into American society in an apparent bid to get close to power brokers and learn secrets.

Chapman taunted the West by appearing on the cover of Russian Maxim is a secret agent in lingerie, armed with a gun, just months after her release.

What was the Illegals Program?

The Illegals Program is what the US called a network of Russian sleeper agents embedded in the country to spy on the FBI.

Their investigation, under non-official cover, resulted in the arrest of ten agents and a prisoner swap between the US and Russia.

By posing as ordinary Americans, they tried to build contacts with academics, industrialists, and politicians to gather information.

The ten sleeper agents were charged with “carrying out long-term, deep-cover assignments in the United States on behalf of the Russian Federation”.

What was Chapman’s life before her return to Russia?

Her links to the West begun aged 19 during her time as an economics student at Moscow University.

Chapman, who was born Anna Kushchenko but retains her married name, travelled to London during her summer holidays.

It was then when she met public schoolboy Alex Chapman, who she married in 2002, at an underground rave party in London’s Docklands

Speaking to the Daily Telegraph in 2010 – four years after their divorce – Alex dubbed the meet as love as first sight.

When did Chapman’s husband Alex die?

Alex Chapman was just 36 when he died two years ago and was last listed as living in Bournemouth, Dorset, it has been reported.

His family today insisted his untimely death was not suspicious.

A member of the family told the MailOnline: “It was very distressing at the time, but he died from natural causes.

“There was nothing suspicious about his death. His father dealt with everything and it was very sad but I don’t want to go into any further details.”

Where is she now and what is she doing?

Aside from being somewhat of an Instagram celebrity (she has more than 100,000 followers), Chapman is now largely a TV presenter and model.

On her social media post, flooded with sultry, half-naked snaps, she says she works as a host for REN TV, one of the largest privately funded stations in Russia.

She is reported to have given birth to her first child – a son – at a private Moscow clinic in April 2016 but would not reveal the father’s identity.

She was once ordered by the Kremlin to seduce whistle-blower Edward Snowden as part of a ruse to keep him in Moscow following his high-profile defection.

During an interview for the Bond girl-esque issue of Maxim, Chapman hinted her secret weapon was her ability to seduce the opposite sex.

Asked whether Russians, Brits or Americans are easiest to seduce, she replied: “Seduction, like love and friendship, are the same everywhere.”