Robert Mueller, United States special counsel, announced on Friday that he has criminally charged 13 Russians and three Russian entities for interfering in the 2016 US election to help Donald Trump.
In a 37-page indictment by the federal grand jury in Washington DC, it is alleged that the Russians’ operations “included supporting the presidential campaign of then-candidate Donald J Trump … and disparaging Hillary Clinton,” his Democratic opponent.
The Russian operation following Trump’s victory promoted allegations of voter fraud by the Democratic party, which coincidentally around that time, Trump claimed that he would have won the popular vote if not for large-scale voter fraud. However, Trump had no evidence of this.
The individuals charged are: Mikhail Ivanovich Bystrov, Mikhail Leonidovich Burchik, Aleksandra Yuryevna Krylova, Anna Vladislavovna Bogacheva, Sergey Pavlovich Polozov, Maria Anatolyevna Bovda, Robert Sergeyevich Bovda, Dzheykhun Nasimi Ogly Aslanov, Vadim Vladimirovich Podkopaev, Gleb Igorevitch Vasilchenko, Irina Viktorovna Kaverzina, Yevgeny Viktorovich Prigozhin and Vladimir Venkov.
All were charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States, while three defendants were charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and bank fraud, and five defendants were charged with aggravated identity theft.
In a statement on Friday, Trump called the allegations relating to him being involved in the Russian agenda as “outlandish partisan attacks, wild and false allegations, and far-fetched theories”.
SAHARA REPORTERS
