The website, which
calls on people to make donations to support efforts of Butina’s defense to
secure her release, is both in Russian and English languages.
WASHINGTON, August
18. /TASS/. A fund in support of Russian citizen Maria Butina, currently in
custody in the United States, was opened on the Internet, her lawyer Robert
Driscoll told TASS on Friday.
The website, which
calls on people to make donations to support efforts of Butina’s defense to
secure her release, is in Russian and English languages and holds pictures of
the detained Russian national as well as her short biography.
"Your donations
will help Maria and her lawyers to provide the best possible defense in court
for her," a statement from the authors of the website says. "We will
be very grateful for donations from friends and supporters. Information about
sponsors will be strictly confidential."
Butina’s lawyer
Driscoll told TASS that "The fund was established to allow friends and
supporters to help pay for her legal defense."
"Donations of
large or small sums are welcome as easily made via the website," he said.
"We have not fixed a particular amount, but her defense will be
expensive."
"For example,
the government will produce over 10 Terabytes of data for the defense to review
- the equivalent of millions of pages," Butina’s lawyer stated.
"Fortunately, a generous American supporter paid her legal fees up until
her arrest (i.e., for the Senate testimony and documents production) but now
the costs have escalated and she needs financial support."
Driscoll thanked TASS
for highlighting this issue saying "I appreciate that you will write a
story on this. I think strong donations (both in terms of dollars and numbers
of small donations) will let her know how much people in Russia, America, and
around the world support her."
Maria Butina, 29, was
arrested in Washington on July 15, on the eve of the Helsinki summit between
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump. The
Russian gun rights activist is facing charges of conspiracy for conducting
activities in the interests of a foreign state. Investigators claim that she
was engaged in these activities without registering as a foreign agent at the
US Department of Justice.
The FBI said Butina
arrived in the United States in August 2016 on a student entry visa and took up
studies at the American University. She received the master’s degree in
international relations in May 2018, according to her lawyer.
Butina is a member of
the board of the Russian public associations ‘The Right to Guns’. In this
capacity, she attended the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington in February
2017 where President Donald Trump took part.
Russian Foreign
Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said earlier that Moscow considered
Washington’s allegations against Butina to be groundless and politically
motivated. According to her, Russia has been doing everything possible to
protect the woman’s legitimate rights and interests.
Source: ITAR-TASS
18-08-2018
