Video courtesy of Julia Davis
A reminder that Maria Butina was sent back to Russia after she was arrested by the FBI and convicted of charges brought by the Department of Justice (without Bill Barr’s knowledge). She was supposed to serve 18 months, but only did 5, and the Trump administration sent her back to Russia, for nothing. No prisoner exchange. The rumor was that her knowledge of the inner workings of the NRA and the Republican Party was just too embarrassing and filled with revelations for them to hold her as she was threatening to spill the beans. In 2021 she became a member of the State Duma.
Source: New York Post
Maria Butina, the gun-loving, Russian ex-spy-turned-politician, couldn’t contain her glee Thursday over the White House deal to swap notorious Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout for WNBA star Brittney Griner.
“The fact that Russia pushed through the exchange of Bout, whom America fundamentally did not want to give away for many years, right now means that, like in The Godfather, we ‘made them an offer that cannot be refused,’” Butina opined on the Telegram messaging app Thursday.
“This is a position of strength, comrades,” she added.
Butina, a former student at American University, is best known for attempting to infiltrate prominent conservative groups, including the National Rifle Association, as part of a Kremlin-backed influence campaign ahead of the 2016 presidential election.
She served a 15-month stint in US prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy charges and was released in 2019. She then returned to Russia, where she became a member of the State Duma in 2021.
And the spy seen with some of her pals.
