Alleged Russian agent is poised to plead guilty
Maria Butina, a Russian gun rights activist, is poised to plead guilty in a case involving accusations that she was working as an agent for the Kremlin in the United States, according to a new court filing.
Attorneys for Butina and federal prosecutors jointly requested in court documents Monday that U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan set a time for Butina to withdraw her previous plea of “not guilty.” They said they could be available for her to enter her plea as early as Tuesday.
A plea is not final until it is entered in court and accepted by a judge. Monday’s filing did not indicate to what charge she will plead.
Butina was accused of working to push the Kremlin’s agenda by forming bonds with National Rifle Association officials and other conservative leaders and making outreach to 2016 presidential candidates. A native of Siberia, she founded a group to expand gun rights in Russia, a profile that allowed her to develop relationships with U.S. conservatives intrigued with her work. Prosecutors said Butina, 30, stepped up her activities after moving to Washington in September 2016 to attend graduate school at American University.
Her lawyers had said her interactions with the NRA and others were typical of an ambitious student anxious to network and eager to build better relations between the U.S. and her country. They had at one point argued her outreach should be covered by constitutional protections for free speech and noted that she was not accused of attempting to steal U.S. secrets or working with Russian intelligence.