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WASHINGTON: A judge on Wednesday ordered a Russian officer to be detained until his trial after US prosecutors had argued that she had links to Russian secret services and that She could flee the United States. He said he had been in contact with Russian intelligence agents and kept the contact details of several Russian agents.
During a preliminary hearing in the Federal District Court of Columbia, the chief prosecutor of the case. showed a photo of Butina in a Washington restaurant with a person who they believe to be a Russian intelligence officer.
A 29-year-old graduate student from American University wore a combination of orange jail and showed no emotion. a plea not guilty. Butina's next appearance was scheduled for July 24.
The government also showed a copy of a handwritten note uncovered by the FBI in the Butina apartment to find out how to respond to an offer of employment from a Russian intelligence agency . she was standing in front of the US Capitol the day Donald Trump was sworn in as president 18 months ago.
"We do not believe that she was there … just to go to the American university," said Erik Michael Kenerson. The case coincides with an investigation by US Special Advisor Robert Mueller whether members of Trump's election campaign in 2016 coordinated with Russian officials. . Butina's case is handled by the US Attorney's Office and the Department of Justice's National Security Division.
Moscow disputes the US allegations and Trump denies any electoral complicity.
Robert Driscoll, Butina's lawyer, said that she is not a Russian agent and poses no risk of theft. She was arrested Sunday without warning.
In a statement to reporters after the hearing, Driscoll stated that his client was innocent.
"Although we respect the court, we do not agree at all with incarceration." Butina was accused of working with a senior Russian official and two unidentified US citizens, trying to Infiltrate a gun defense organization in the United States and influence the United States' foreign policy towards Russia
The group of weapons rights to fire was not identified.However, her social media accounts show that she attended many events of the National Rifle Association and met with senior officials of the lobbying group.
The Russian official unidentified seems to fit the description of Alexander Torshin, a deputy governor of the Russian central bank, by the US Treasury Department in April The central bank declined to comment on the case. [19659004] The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Foreigners said that there was no place for the arrest of Butina and that her embassy in Washington had requested a meeting with her
. Kenerson said at Wednesday's hearing that the South Dakota federal prosecutor had conducted a criminal investigation into a separate criminal fraud case in court records.
The description of "US Person 1" at the hearing and in court records appears to be that of Paul Erickson, 56, a conservative political activist who lives in South Dakota. He appears in photos with Butina on social media and has created a company with Butina in 2016 called Bridges LLC.
In court records, prosecutors stated that Butina considered a relationship with the person as "merely a necessary part of her activities".
Driscoll designated the resident of South Dakota as Butina's boyfriend and said that she had planned to move with him, but she was later arrested.
He declined to comment on the separate fraud case, and Erickson did not return several calls from Reuters for comment.
Driscoll repeatedly argued that Butina is not a risk of theft and has cooperated with the government. Earlier this year, he said, she testified voluntarily about her activities during a non-public hearing before the US Senate Special Committee on Intelligence.
He also revealed that he received an investigation by the Federal Election Commission in March 2018 regarding donations to a political campaign. He did not specify the details
(Report of Sarah N. Lynch and Tim Ahmann, edited by Jonathan Oatis and Grant McCool)
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