The Putin plot thickens
Scots baron claims missing professor in ‘dirty tricks’ row is alive and well
IT’S the puzzling case that has put Scotland at the heart of a US political scandal – a Stirling University professor accused of helping the Russians meddle in the American presidential election.
Josef Mifsud, 57, was named in a US court as the man who offered Kremlin ‘dirt’ on Hillary Clinton to Donald Trump’s aides. The papers also declared him ‘missing, presumed dead’.
Now the case has taken another twist. The Baron of Inchdrewer – international lawyer Stephan Roh, who gained the title when he bought Inchdrewer Castle in Aberdeenshire with his ex-model wife Olga in 2016 – has claimed Professor Mifsud, his client, is alive and well.
Mr Roh also denied Professor Mifsud – who resigned from Stirling University’s politics department last November – offered ‘dirt’ to the Trump campaign. He said: ‘There have been many wrong accusations against Professor Mifsud. He is a friend of Scotland and he was happy working with the people at Stirling.’
Last month, Professor Mifsud, from Malta, was formally named in papers lodged at a New York court by the governing body of the Democratic Party, which is suing Russia, the Trump campaign and WikiLeaks.
Papers claim that while Professor Mifsud was at Stirling University, he offered to cultivate his ‘substantial connections with Russian government officials’ to deliver ‘thousands of emails’ to damage Mrs Clinton.
Court documents said all the defendants had been served with the complaint, ‘with the exception of Mifsud (who is missing and may be deceased)’.
But Mr Roh insisted his client was alive, saying: ‘He came to see us at our Zurich office at the end of May 2018.
‘Very recently, we were again informed he is alive.’
Professor Mifsud has previously said: ‘I never got a penny from the Russians. My conscience is clean.’