Facebook users were skeptical of a McClatchy DC report on Thursday that the FBI was investigating whether “Russian money went to [the] NRA to help Trump.” Unlike many articles flagged by users, this news comes from an established news outlet.
The report cites two sources informed on the matter who “spoke on condition of anonymity because Mueller’s investigation is confidential and mostly involves classified information,” McClatchy reports.
According to these sources the FBI is investigating if the deputy governor of Russia’s central bank, Alexander Torshin, illegally gave money to the National Rifle Association to assist the organization in electing Donald Trump.
The amount of evidence the FBI has in this matter is unknown.
McClatchy also notes that Congress has had an eye on Torshin as well:
| The House and Senate Intelligence Committees and Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee also have taken an interest in Torshin as part of their parallel inquiries into Russia’s interference in the 2016 elections. |
Torshin has attended several NRA conferences dating back to at least 2014, the New York Times reports, and has built a relationship with the NRA, hosting two dinners for NRA top-ranking delegates when they visited Russia in 2015 according to McClatchy DC.
The article also notes the Times’ report that Torshin spoke with Donald Trump Jr. at an NRA convention and attempted to establish contact between Putin and then-candidate Trump.
It is important to note that McClatchy reported that it could not discover how much evidence the FBI has on this matter or how long the investigation has been going on.
