US prosecutors charge Russian-American political pundit of violating sanctions

(CNN) — The Justice Department unsealed criminal charges against Russian-American political pundit Dimitri Simes on Thursday, alleging he was paid more than $1 million from a Russian news outlet in violation of US sanctions.

According to the indictment, Simes coordinated and communicated with the Russian government, including President Vladimir Putin, while hosting a show for RT, the Russian state media network.

Simes would work with the Russian government over what the show would cover and how, the indictment says, highlighting coverage over the war with Ukraine that was favorable to Russia.

Simes was a prominent part of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into election interference in the 2016 presidential election.

Mueller’s team found that Simes had contacts with several members of Trump’s campaign, including Jared Kushner, over the campaign’s positions on Russia.

The special counsel did not uncover any evidence that Simes passed any information from Russia to the Trump campaign and, when Simes brought up Russian contacts to Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law told him it would be “bad optics for the Campaign to develop hidden Russian contacts,” according to the report.

Simes is charged alongside his wife, Anastasia Simes. The two are facing three charges for money laundering and violating both the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and the Emergency Economic Powers Act.

Simes left the United States in 2022 after obtaining Russian citizenship and has not returned, according to court documents. It was not immediately clear if Simes has an attorney.

The FBI searched Simes’ home last month. The bureau also searched the homes of other Americans who have worked with Russia’s state television networks.

The charges come just one day after the Biden administration launched a broad campaign to combat Russian efforts to interfere with the upcoming presidential election in the United States.

That multipronged strategy included charges against two employees of RT accused of participating in a scheme that funneled nearly $10 million to set up and direct a Tennessee-based front company to produce online content aimed at sowing divisions among Americans.

The indictment against Simes, which did not mention the upcoming US election, details his salary and other perks he received while hosting a show for the sanctioned RT media outlet.

“Simes received funds and services from Channel One Russia after it was sanctioned,” the indictment says, “including monthly salary payments totaling over $1 million; a personal car and driver; a stipend for an apartment in Moscow, Russia; health insurance; business-class plane tickets between Washington, D.C., and Moscow, Russia; a team of ten employees, including an assistant; and efforts by Channel One Russia to promote his ‘positive image’ in mass media.”

For his work, according to court documents, in late 2023 the Russian government honored Simes with an award for his show.

This story has been updated with additional developments.

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