Prosecutors, Defense Agree: Send Gun Rights Activist Maria Butina Back Home to Russia

By Susan Katz Keating

Maria Butina wants to go home to Russia, and U.S. officials hope to send her there as soon as possible.

In reciprocal court filings released Friday, Butina – who pleaded guilty to one charge of conspiracy – and U.S. Justice Department officials asked that the Siberian-born political operative be deported to Russia after she is sentenced in U.S. District Court April 26.

The high profile face of an unlikely-seeming Russian gun rights movement, Butina, 30, came to the United States as a student in 2016. She enrolled at American University in Washington, D.C. as a graduate student in International Relations. She soon became involved with American conservative lawmakers and officials from the National Rifle Association. At one point, she helped arrange a trip to Moscow for NRA leaders.

In July 2018, following an FBI investigation, Butina was arrested and charged with conspiracy to act as agent of a foreign government.

During a months-long series of court proceedings, Butina agreed late last year to plead guilty to one charge in exchange for a lighter sentence.

In a December 13 exchange with U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, Butina signaled that she would not ask for asylum in the United States, and that she knew she would be sent home.

“Do you understand that, as a result of your guilty plea here today, you could be deported from the United States?” Chutkan asked at the December 13 hearing.

“Yes, I understand,” Butina said.

“Do you understand that the deportation would occur following the completion of any prison sentence that I impose?” Chutkan asked.

“Yes. I understand,” Butina answered.

The two women affirmed also Butina’s understanding that a guilty plea would preclude her from becoming a U.S. citizen at some future date.

In the court filings released on Friday, Butina made clear that she was not afraid to be deported to Russia. She stated that she had not previously been persecuted nor tortured in the Russian Federation, and that she was not afraid of being persecuted nor tortured upon her return.

As part of her statement in support of judicial removal from the United States, Butina agreed to waive certain procedures, and to cooperate fully with Immigration and Customs Enforcement efforts to deport her.

Additionally, Butina acknowledged that she is barred from returning to the United States for 10 years. She agreed that she would not attempt to enter nor transit through the United States without first obtaining permission from the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.

Butina simply wants to go home now and get on with her life, says a source with knowledge of the case. She looks forward to seeing her family, and spending time with them.

“We’re totally on board with that,” says a second source familiar with the government’s case against Butina. “She should go back home. Everyone is in agreement here.”