Accused Russian spy Maria Butina spoke at event attended by Matt Bevin

Thomas Novelly | Courier Journal

Maria Butina, arrested and accused by the U.S. government of being a Russian spy who tried to influence American politicians, was a last-minute speaker at a 2016 fundraising dinner in Louisville that included Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin and Lt. Gov. Jenean Hampton as guests.

Butina, identified as the chairwoman of the "Russian NRA," was a guest speaker at the Heroes for Freedom and Liberty Dinner at the Mellwood Arts Center in Louisville on May 19, 2016.

It was the week of the National Rifle Association's annual convention in Louisville. At that gathering, Butina and a Russian handler by the name of Alexandr Torshin met briefly with Donald Trump Jr. in Louisville.

Great night in #Louisville with @GovMattBevin & Medal of Honor recipient Sammy Davis! Honored to join these patriots pic.twitter.com/8AGUhcT9bB — Lee Greenwood (@TheLeeGreenwood) May 20, 2016

Mike King, the event planner of the dinner and fundraiser, told the Courier Journal Monday that Butina and several other Russian figures were late additions to the event. He had to shift seating to accommodate them, King said.

King said Butina was added at the suggestion of an NRA associate. He could not recall the man's identity.

"When she got invited, we were kind of surprised that she was coming to it," King said. "She was considered a celebrity."

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Butina gave a five-minute speech about freedom, her Russian childhood and gun rights, according to King. After her remarks, Butina and the other Russian guests quickly left. There was no mention of candidate Donald Trump or the 2016 election, King noted.

King said the May 19, 2016, event was "non-political" but added Bevin and Hampton were in attendance to honor American veterans.

He did not recall Bevin and Hampton ever speaking with Butina.

Elizabeth Kuhn, a spokeswoman for Bevin, did not immediately return a phone call or email Monday.

Other notable guests at the dinner included "God Bless the U.S.A" singer Lee Greenwood, former Democratic Lt. Gov. Steve Henry and his wife, Heather French, a former Miss America and the former commissioner of the Kentucky's Department of Veteran's Affairs, according to King.

Accused Russian spy Maria Butina is pictured in this Instagram post with fellow Russian Alexandr Torshin. Story continues after post.

“Maria Butina is not an agent of the Russian Federation,” her lawyer Robert Driscoll, said in a statement last week to the Courier Journal. “There is simply no indication of Butina seeking to influence or undermine any specific policy or law."

Torshin is one of more than 20 Russians who have been sanctioned by the U.S. government in response to Russian influence in the 2016 election.

A Courier Journal review of Torshin’s social media shows that he posted several pictures with Butina and also tweeted about being in Louisville during the 2016 NRA Convention.

Driscoll told the Courier Journal that Butina and Torshin's brief meeting with Trump Jr. was inconsequential. “The nature of their conversation was just guns and small talk," he said.

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Alan Futerfas, Trump Jr.’s lawyer, confirmed to the Courier Journal that they had briefly exchanged words, but did not disclose the location of their meeting.

Trump Jr. was present at the NRA's legislative auction and dinner at the Galt House, according to a spokeswoman for the hotel and a Courier Journal review of Trump Jr.'s Twitter and Instagram accounts.

Driscoll and Futerfas told the Courier Journal they could not recall the date or location of the dinner during Trump Jr.'s brief visit to Louisville.

In May 2016, Torshin and Butina proposed a meeting between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Louisville NRA convention, according to the New York Times. However, that meeting was shut down by Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law.

Butina, a 29-year-old graduate of American University in Washington, D.C., was arrested July 15, accused by federal prosecutors last week of attempting to develop "relationships with American politicians in order to establish private, or as she called them, 'back channel' lines of communication.

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These lines could be used by the Russian Federation to penetrate the U.S. national decision-making apparatus to advance the agenda of the Russian Federation," according to the criminal complaint.

Butina is accused of using a prominent "guns rights organization" to "advance the interests of the Russian Federation," according to the criminal complaint.

Butina has taken pictures and interacted with numerous political figures, according to the criminal complaint, including the NRA's executive vice-president Wayne LaPierre and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker.

Bevin and candidate Donald Trump spoke at the NRA's 2016 convention in Louisville when Butina was there.

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During the convention, the NRA endorsed Trump. The presidential candidate told the crowd at the Louisville Convention Center that the only way to save the Second Amendment was to vote for him in November.

Bevin also gave some remarks where he critiqued liberal ideology and said elections "are not a game."

“Europe is crumbling in some respects,” Bevin said during his speech.

“The liberties, the freedom, the degree of regulation, the suffocation of government, the overreach, not only on their right to bear arms but on so many individual liberties and freedoms, it’s suffocating that continent, the world is being suffocated, we are being suffocated even in this nation. This is why these elections matter.”

The NRA did not return more than a dozen interview requests left at their media hotline last week.

Thomas Novelly: tnovelly@courierjournal.com, 502-582-4465. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: courier-journal.com/tomn.

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Donald Trump Jr. is pictured with former Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke Jr. at the 2016 NRA-ILA auction and dinner at the Galt House in Louisville.