Russian Foreign Minister Attacks Pompeo, Has Specific Demand for US Politicians

Butina, 29, was indicted on Tuesday on charges of conspiracy and acting as a foreign agent of Russia.

The Justice Department accuses her of working at the direction of Alexander Torshin, the deputy chief of Russia’s central bank, to infiltrate American political groups. Butina and Torshin were known to have made close contacts with leaders of the National Rifle Association.

A federal judge decided on Wednesday that Butina will remain in jail while she awaits trial. The Justice Department argued that she posed a flight risk because of her contacts with Russian government officials.

The DOJ said in a memo that the government has evidence that Butina maintained contacts with members of Russia’s foreign intelligence service, the FSB.

She also referred to messages with Torshin to a Russian billionaire as a “funder” of her activities.

The government argued that Butina could either flee the U.S. or enter the Russian embassy, where she would have safe harbor.

Butina was also in a romantic relationship with a Republican political operative named Paul Erickson.

Erickson closely matches the description of “U.S. Person 1” in the Justice Department’s filings in the Butina case. The person is described as being “instrumental in aiding her covert influence operation.”

Erickson has not been accused of wrongdoing, and it is unclear if he knew what Butina was up to or helped her unwittingly.

In May 2016, Erickson sent an email to Trump campaign official Rick Dearborn offering to set up a meeting between Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin. In the email, entitled “Kremlin Connection,” Erickson said that Torshin would act as Putin’s intermediary.

The meeting did not occur, though Torshin did briefly meet Donald Trump Jr. on the sidelines of an event at the NRA convention in May 2016.

The Justice Department suggested in its court filings that Butina was not entirely open with Erickson about her motives.

In its memo, U.S. attorney Jessie Lieu wrote that “Butina offered an individual other than U.S. Person 1 sex in exchange for a position within a special interest organization.” Butina also complained to Torshin about having to live with Erickson.

The State Department could not be reached for comment about the Lavrov-Pompeo phone call.

A version of this article appeared on The Daily Caller News Foundation website. Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.