There appears to have been a well-orchestrated, off-the-books plan to deny Roy Moore a U.S. Senate seat last year.

In October 2017, Republican Senate candidate Judge Roy Moore (pictured above) found himself with more than a thousand social media followers thought at the time to be Russian supporters. They were quickly determined to be fake bots leading opponents to go to Plan B, the Kavanaughing of Moore.

The money behind the Russian bot scheme, it has come to light, came from deep pockets from Silicon Valley given to American Engagement Technologies.

The attorney general of Alabama, Steve Marshall, has opened up an investigation into the allegations.

American Family Association spokesman Walker Wildmon says it appears there is no direct link to now-Senator Doug Jones (pictured at right) but it's dirty politics nonetheless.

"At what point should some of this stuff be illegal?" he asks. "When it comes to intentionally spreading disinformation and lies, whether it be on the Internet or in ads, that should be cause for concern."

Mississippi-based AFA endorsed Moore, who famously defended the Ten Commandments monument at the state capitol and won praise from conservatives for his views. But his General Election campaign was dogged with claims from women that he sexually assaulted them, accusations that had never surfaced in decades of public service.

While's it's too late to do anything about Democrat Doug Jones' surprising victory in deep red Alabama, Wildmon says the deception may well have made a difference.

"Roy Moore lost by 20-some-odd thousand votes," Wildmon points out, "and when you have billionaires from California funneling hundreds of thousands of dollars into Alabama to defeat Roy Moore, then this very well could have turned the election."