Reports: Accused Russian agent Maria Butina ready to plead guilty and cooperate with U.S. prosecutors

In this photo taken on Sunday, April 21, 2013, Maria
In this photo taken on Sunday, April 21, 2013, Maria

WASHINGTON – Accused Russian agent Maria Butina will plead guilty to conspiracy Wednesday and cooperate with U.S. prosecutors, according to ABC News and CNN.

Her lawyers and prosecutors notified the court Monday that they “resolved this matter” and she wanted to change her original plea of not guilty. She signed a plea deal Saturday and has been cooperating with investigators, according to CNN.

The plea agreement states that Butina "agreed and conspired, with a Russian government official ('Russian Official') and at least one other person, for Butina to act in the United States under the direction of Russian Official without prior notification to the Attorney General," according to ABC and CNN.

The charge carries a prison term up to five years, but prosecutors estimated a sentence up to six months, according to CNN.

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Butina’s cooperation will focus on the interactions she and her boyfriend, longtime Republican operative Paul Erickson, had with Russian handlers, according to ABC and CNN.

Erickson hasn’t been charged. But prosecutors notified Erickson that he is a target of an ongoing investigation, according to ABC.

Based on the description, the “Russian Official” appears to be Alexander Torshin, deputy governor of the Russian Central Bank and a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Under his direction, the agreement said, she “sought to establish unofficial lines of communication with Americans having power and influence over U.S. politics,” according to ABC.

Spokesmen for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in D.C., for Butina and for Erickson didn’t respond to requests for comment.

The case was brought by federal prosecutors in D.C. and not by Justice Department special counsel Robert Mueller, who is investigating Russian interference with the 2016 election.

Butina, 30, has been in jail in northern Virginia after prosecutors accused her of interacting with groups such as the National Rifle Association, and exploiting those connections to try to advance Russian interests. She met with political figures, including Donald Trump when he was a candidate for president, according to ABC.

Butina’s Russian gun rights group called “Right to Bear Arms” hosted a delegation of former NRA presidents, board members and major donors in Moscow in 2015, where she appears to have succeeded in arranging a meeting between NRA insiders and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, according to ABC.

Prosecutors alleged Butina was in regular contact with her Russian backers, including Torshin, a Kremlin-linked banker sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury. At one court hearing, prosecutors showed a photo of Butina dining with a Russian diplomat suspected of being an intelligence officer.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Reports: Accused Russian agent Maria Butina ready to plead guilty and cooperate with U.S. prosecutors