美国国家公共电台 NPR Maria Butina, Accused Of Being Russian Agent, Reaches Plea Deal With Feds

 

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Maria Butina has reached a plea deal. She's the Russian woman accused of launching a secret political influence campaign in the United States. NPR national justice correspondent Carrie Johnson reports.

CARRIE JOHNSON, BYLINE¹: Images of the red-haired graduate student posing with weapons attracted international attention. Maria Butina has been in federal custody² since July. That's when the FBI arrested her for acting³ as a Russian agent on U.S. soil. Authorities say she hatched a plan to appeal to Republican political leaders by targeting events at the National Rifle Association and the National Prayer Breakfast.

Now, after about six months behind bars, Butina has reached a plea deal with the Justice Department. She's preparing to plead guilty to a single conspiracy⁴ charge for failing to register her activities with the attorney general. The deal calls for Butina's cooperation and her testimony⁵ before a grand jury. That could be bad news for her American boyfriend. He's Republican operative Paul Erickson. Erickson's been under investigation⁶ by authorities in Washington and South Dakota for months, but he has not been charged with wrongdoing.

Prosecutors⁷ say Butina's handler was a prominent Russian central banker, Alexander Torshin. Torshin became a life member of the NRA. He briefly⁸ met Donald Trump⁹ Jr. at an NRA convention in 2016. The U.S. government eventually put Torshin on a sanctions list, and Russian media reported he recently retired¹⁰ from his post.

Butina is due in court Wednesday afternoon. A judge needs to approve the plea agreement and, ultimately, to decide her punishment. Butina faces a maximum of five years in prison. But with no criminal record and cooperation, she could serve far less time. The plea deal indicates she'll be deported¹¹ back to Russia once she completes her sentence.

Carrie Johnson, NPR News, Washington.

1 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

2 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

3 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

4 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

5 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

6 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

7 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

8 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

9 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

10 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

11 deported   

v.将…驱逐出境( deport的过去式和过去分词 )；举止

参考例句：

• They stripped me of my citizenship and deported me. 他们剥夺我的公民资格，将我驱逐出境。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The convicts were deported to a deserted island. 罪犯们被流放到一个荒岛。 来自《简明英汉词典》