Former Trump Campaign Adviser Charged Over Work for Russian State Media
The Justice Department on Thursday charged former Trump 2016 campaign adviser Dimitri Simes with violating U.S. sanctions against Russia.
Simes, a dual citizen of Russia and the United States, served as an adviser to former President Donald Trump during his 2016 campaign. The Justice Department alleges that Simes and his wife, Anastasia Simes, “participated in a scheme to violate U.S. sanctions for the benefit of sanctioned Russian broadcaster Channel One Russia and to launder funds obtained from that scheme.”
Channel One Russia, a state-owned Russian broadcaster, has been under U.S. sanctions since 2022.
According to a DOJ press release, Simes “allegedly participated in a scheme to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), by providing services to Channel One Russia, including by serving as a presenter and producer of programming, and by receiving over $1 million, a personal car and driver, a stipend for an apartment in Moscow, Russia, and a team of 10 employees from Channel One Russia,” following its sanctioning.
The indictment also alleges that the couple further violated U.S. sanctions through their interactions with Russian oligarch Aleksandr Yevgenyevich Udodov. “Anastasia Simes and others allegedly participated in a scheme to violate IEEPA by purchasing art and antiques for the benefit of Udovov from galleries and auction houses in the United States and Europe, and having the items shipped to her residence in Huntly, Virginia, where they were stored for onward shipment to Russia,” the DOJ says, adding that the funds Mrs. Simes received were then laundered to conceal their connection to Udodov.
The DOJ notes that the couple remains “at large and are believed to be in Russia.” Each is charged with “one count of conspiracy to violate the IEEPA, one count of violating the IEEPA, and one count of conspiracy to commit international money laundering.” They each face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison per count if convicted.
The indictment comes on the heels of a separate DOJ case charging two Russian citizens and employees of the state-controlled Russian media outfit RT of participating in an unlawful scheme to “create and distribute content to U.S. audiences with hidden Russian government messaging.” Several prominent right-wing content creators were allegedly paid by the fraudulent company established in the scheme to create content for the influence network, though all deny knowledge of the groups alleged Russian connections.
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