Politics

Trump associate and Maria Butina’s ex Paul Erickson indicted on financial crimes

Paul Erickson, a conservative political operative and former boyfriend of alleged Russian spy Maria Butina, was charged on Wednesday with wire fraud and money laundering in North Dakota, federal law enforcement officials said.

Erickson pleaded not guilty to the charges on Wednesday in the case, which is not related to the ongoing probe into Russian meddling into the 2016 presidential election, the Department of Justice said in a press release.

The operative has close ties to Trump campaign officials and is also being probed for acting as a foreign agent. The New York Times identified Erickson as a potential connection between the Trump campaign and the Russian government.

In the latest indictment, feds claim that Erickson duped investors from 1996 to 2018 into believing he was building assisted living facilities across the US, The Rapid City Journal reported.

He allegedly claimed investments in the company would be paid back within a year, according to the report.

He faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for wire fraud, and a $500,000 fine for money laundering, the DOJ said in a statement.

Erickson’s girlfriend, Maria Butina, pleaded guilty in December for conspiring to act as an agent of the Kremlin in the US.

Butina, a pro-gun advocate, admitted to working with an American and a Russian official to establish a back-channel communication line between US politicians and Moscow.