A Russian-American woman has been charged with acting as an illegal agent in the U.S. for at least 10 years.
Elena Branson, 61, was charged with six counts in connection to allegations that she worked as an unregistered agent in the U.S., according to a Tuesday statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.
Authorities allege that Branson, a dual U.S.-Russian citizen, has been working for the Russian government and officials in Moscow since at least 2011 “to advance Russian interests in the United States,” according to the U.S. attorney’s office.
She allegedly coordinated meetings for Russian officials to lobby American political officials and businesspeople, and tried to promote Russian government politics by running organizations in the U.S.
Additionally, authorities say Branson never informed the attorney general of her work or registered under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).
Branson fled to Russia from the U.S. in 2020 and is currently at-large, according to the U.S. attorney’s office. She was interviewed by the FBI in September 2020, when she claimed that Russian officials did not ask her to set up meetings between American business leaders or politicians and officials from the Russian government.
During an interview with a Russian government-control television station in October, Branson said she left the U.S. because she thought she was going to be arrested, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.
Authorities allege that Branson corresponded with then-Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin as part of her work, and created an organization in New York City named the Russian Center New York. She has allegedly used the facility “to host events and engage in public messaging at the direction of the Russian government and Russian officials,” according to the U.S. attorney’s office. Additionally, authorities said she “received tens of thousands of dollars in funding from the Russian government” for the center.
The charges against Branson include acting as an agent of a foreign government without notifying the attorney general, conspiring to evade registration in accordance with FARA, conspiring to commit visa fraud and making false statements to the FBI.
“As alleged, Elena Branson, a dual U.S. / Russian national, actively subverted foreign agent registration laws in the United States in order to promote Russian policies and ideology,” U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Damian Williams said in a statement.
The charges against Branson comes after the U.S. has imposed sweeping sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. The penalties have struck top Moscow banks and officials. The Biden administration expanded the sanctions on Tuesday, announcing that the U.S. is banning Russian energy imports.