Russian Woman Charged With Interference in US Elections
Elena Khusyaynova, 44, is accused of attempting to “sow discord”
Friday, a Russian woman was charged for allegedly interfering in US elections, including the 2018 midterms. The Department of Justice indicated that the criminal charges are not indicative of interference to the degree that electoral outcomes were swayed.
Elena Khusyaynova, 44, is accused of attempting to “sow discord”, “as part of a conspiracy that exploited thousands of social media accounts and emails that claimed to be owned by U.S. residents, authorities said,” reports CNBC.
Russian national charged with interfering in 2018 election from CNBC.
CNBC has more:
A Russian woman has been charged with trying to interfere and “sow discord” in the American political system, including in the 2018 midterm elections as part of a conspiracy that exploited thousands of social media accounts and emails that claimed to be owned by U.S. residents, authorities said.
Elena Khusyaynova of St. Petersburg, Russia, is accused of participating in a conspiracy engaged in “information warfare against the United States” that aimed “create and amplify divisive social media and political content.”
The case against the 44-year-old Khusyaynova, which does not allege involvement by any Americans, is the first to involve alleged interference in next month’s Congressional elections.
But the Justice Department said, “The criminal complaint does not include any allegation that Khusyaynova or the broader conspiracy had any effect on the outcome of an election.” The department said it received “exceptional cooperation” in its probe from Facebook, Twitter and other “private sector companies.”
Prosecutors claim Khusyaynova, who is not in custody, is the chief accountant for a Russian entity dubbed Project Lakhta, and managed the group’s financing.
That group is backed by a Russian oligarch Yevgeniy Viktorovich Prigozhin, and two companies that he controls, Concord Management and Consulting LLC, and Concord Catering, according to prosecutors. The Concord firms were named in a criminal indictment brought by special counsel Robert Mueller that alleged attempted interference in the 2016 presidential election.
Prigozhin has been called “Putin’s chef,” a reference to Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
The case against Khusyaynova is not being brought by Mueller. Instead, she is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.
…Perosecutors [sic] noted that the conspirators’ activities “did not exclusively adopt one ideological view; they wrote on topics from varied and sometimes opposing perspectives.”
“Members of the conspiracy were directed, among other things, to create ‘political intensity through supporting radical groups” and to ‘aggravate the conflict between minorities and the rest of the population,’ ” the Justice Department said.
Full complaint here:
Criminal complaint against Russian woman who allegedly interfered in US elections by Legal Insurrection on Scribd
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Interesting. I bet it was hard to tell the hate speech on both sides from the real thing since the extreme sides are so polarized these days.
Fake news from the DOJ. If they really wanted to prosecute, they would have sealed the indictment until they had custody.
The objective is to be seen as “doing something” with absolutely no expectation that she will ever be apprehended and see the inside of a US courtroom. That is a path to be avoided.
Ooo, the Conspiracy (capital letters). What a scary group. Funded by a catering operation. I’m terrified. I really am. Out to take over the political world through Facebook and Instagram ads and posts. Why didn’t Dr. Evil think of that?
“Elena Khusyaynova, 44, is accused of attempting to “sow discord””
What is the exact Federal law that she is being charged on? Sowing discord is what Democrats specialize in. If it was a felony they would all be in jail.
It’s not clear how she defrauded an agency. I didn’t read the whole thing, but is posting Paul Ryan is an indecisive nobody in August 2017 in the comments section of an online newspaper as part of an ongoing trolling operation an actual FARA violation? I kind of viewed it as related to lobbying and other more tangible forms of influence.
I get that if 194,000 people like a Facebook page that says “Stop All Invaders” creates by a phony Beth Malone, you getting your message out. But how the heck do you draw the line between just saying what people believe, or having an entitlement to opine on what goes in another country vs. thinking this is high grade conspiracy?
Because the Russians have been infiltrating and influencing the Democratic Party and institutions for decades via the Americans Communist Party and far more direct methods and they all told me it was McCarthyism to be concerned about that.
And outside the writers at The Guardian signing their real name, I don’t see the difference between Russian propaganda on Facebook and foreign propaganda from UK Socialists at the Gaurdian getting posted on Facebook. Are all foreign owned media registering as FARA? I get we treat RT that way – and it is an influence operation – but every single foreign media tries to influence. Just with different levels of competency and state-driven vs party-aligned intent.
It’s almost like the media and Democratic members of the DOJ are upset that someone else is using the medium they think they control without them knowing and approving of the influence operation. Just saying.
Heh, but I am probably just a Russian bot. And while I already had a negative view of Ryan’s leadership before Trump ran for office, maybe that opinion was never really my own. The Russians made me think it.
BTW, China is a real threat. And vote system hacking IS coming. And that’s a real threat too.
But let’s ignore securing our election system with indestructible physical proof and irrefutable identity checking for some hysteria about Russian trolls.
Am I missing something here, LI crew? Is Russian comments trolling a bigger deal than I think it is? [keep in mind I am a Russian bot when you respond]
Hope Solo: Something is broken when the USA women are dominated by white girls next door
No, you’re right. White women and girls next door.
The Guardian must be trolling us; but, what domestic or foreign interest do they serve, when they are able to express overt diversity (e.g. racism) with impunity?
What a bad joke…soccer is one of the cheapest sports in the world to play. It’s as easy to take up soccer as it is basketball and easier than football, yet the poor inner city kids don’t have a problem getting into either of those sports.
3rd world countries literally gush all over it because of how easy it is to play.
Apparently they are claiming a criminal conspiracy. I’m not sure how they will prove that the object of the conspiracy would be achieved through illegal means. The object, having an impact on a US election isn’t illegal in and of itself. So the method and means the conspirators planned to use must be illegal and I’ll be danged if I can see how the use of the internet’s social media (even phony subscriptions) is illegal (though I admit I refuse to be involved in social media and there could be some “I swear I am the person…” sort of pledge involved in signing up).
So when are we going to look at Russian interference going back to the 1950’s? This is nothing new. The left was guided by Russian interference as long as I have been alive.
Covering that fraud Mueller’s butt. That is all this is.
Fake. All fake. Like Mueller’s indictments of persons he never expects to see in court. “Sowing discord” isn’t even a charge, at least outside Cultural Revolution-era China.
The plan is obvious enough. Use the headlines to keep Democratic voters of the stupider sort—i.e., most of them—hoping that there’s something to the story of “The Russians! The Russians!” And since it seems to be coming from all sides, thanks to America’s thriving lurid-headline industry, that means that the President must be guilty . . . of something . . . somehow.
Fake, fake, fake. Even worse, childish. And worst of all, very, very Democratic.
The biggest mistake the Republicans ever made was their failure to hang all Democrats in 1865.
Sowing discord is pretty serious stuff when you compare it to all of the crimes HRC committed. It’s good to know the DOJ has priorities. The USA is safe now.
Heh. First thing I thought of was Eris (Discord) tossing a golden apple inscribed with “For the Fairest” into the middle of the gods. Next thing you know, The Greeks are besieging Troy.
Dems sow discord all the time and suddenly it’s a problem?
She isn’t a Socialist-Democrat. A Socialist maybe, but no “Democrat” at all.
Sow DISCORD? OMG, if this woman helped get Trump elected, she is the greatest Russian(honorary American) PATRIOT EVER.
If we didn’t know better, one could think that the Dept. of Justice’s job is to troll internet trolls.
Mmmm … wait a minute!
Rosenstein and Mueller trying to save the day.
It’s the internet. You can post from anywhere. I use a virtual server and can post fron virtually anywhere in the world. You can stop one person and there will be a thousand more to take their place. I have no idea how you police this.
Russian interference FAKE NEWS!!!!
-Work of Moose and Squirrel….
THAT was worth 100 upvotes!
And now, a moment of silence, please, for the late June Foray.
Rocket J. Squirrel
Natasha Fatale
1917-2017
I don’t care what this Russian lady did, as it pales in comparison to the blatant lies our major media spouts every day. If you watch major media or late-night TV, you are being told that Elizabeth Warren proved that her American Indian origins, and that Trump is a loud mouthed welcher who won’t pay up – a bald faced lie. It is frightening to think how many Americans are watching these unprincipled, left-wing liars every day. And it is even scarier to observe how lock-step and pre-coordinated the major media story lines are.
Let’s get down to the important stuff, is she “hot”, like that Russian lawyer?
Now the CIA should setup traffic cams all over Mexico and start collecting fines to pay for a border wall.
How is that even a crime?
It isn’t, of course. In fact this looks like complete fraud on the American populace.
Mueller and his entire sorry crew need to be disbarred. It is no wonder why his crew is bleeding real attorneys. Mueller is a disgrace to the occupation. No better than Avanetti.
Is it a crime for illegal aliens to attempt to convince Americans to allow them to stay unless they register as foreign agents?