Valerie
Platinum Member
- Sep 17, 2008
- 31,521
- 7,388
- 1,170
Torshin has been linked to money laundering. Bloomberg reported on the conclusions of a 2013 investigation by Spanish authorities, writing that Alexander Torshin instructed members of the Moscow-based Taganskaya crime syndicate how to launder ill-gotten gains through banks and properties in Spain."
As a result of this investigation, Spain convicted a Torshin underling – who reportedly called Torshin "boss" and "godfather" in recordings – and sentenced this man to nearly four years in prison for illegal transactions totaling more than $1.8 million. Torshin himself was not charged; a Spanish official told Bloomberg that Russia won't cooperate in cases against top politicians. Toshin has denied any wrongdoing.
NRA Connections
Torshin helped establish a Russian gun group called Right to Bear Arms, whose president calls Torshin "a great gun lover." Torshin is also a life member of the NRA – and forged ties to its leadership after attending the NRA's national convention in 2013. McClatchy reports that, in 2015, Toshin hosted "a high-level NRA delegation" during a week-long Moscow trip "that included meetings with influential Russian government and business figures." An attendee describes a debauched week: "They were killing us with vodka and the best Russian food," he told McClatchy. "The trip exceeded my expectations by logarithmic levels."
Trump Connections
At the May 2016 NRA convention in Louisville, Kentucky, where Donald Trump accepted the group's endorsement, Torshin shared a table at dinner with the candidate's son Donald Jr. According to Bloomberg, Torshin claimed to also have met now-president Trump at the convention, and that: "He keeps photos of the event on his computer tablet."
The 2016 NRA convention came off just as Russians were actively seeking contact with the Trump campaign – just weeks earlier, a Russian conduit told Trump staffer George Papadopoulos that Russia had "dirt" on Hillary Clinton, including thousands of her emails. – and hoping to set up a meeting with Trump and Putin.
According to the New York Times, Torshin tried to set up a dinner meeting in Louisville at the time of the NRA convention with then-candidate Trump – with the aim of connecting Trump with Putin. The request was conveyed through a Trump ally in the Christian conservative world, who reportedly sent the campaign an email with the subject line: "Russian backdoor overture and dinner invite." (Trump did not attend that dinner.)
Separately, an NRA member, Paul Erickson – who had been part of the 2015 NRA delegation to Moscow – wrote an email titled, "Kremlin Connection," to Trump campaign adviser Rick Dearborn, according to the New York Times. Erickson reportedly told the campaign that Russia was "quietly but actively seeking a dialogue with the U.S." and would be seeking "first contact" at the NRA convention.
Weeks later, in early June 2016, the trio of Donald Trump Jr., then-campaign manager Paul Manafort, and Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner took a meeting with a Putin-connected lawyer who had offered incriminating material on Hillary Clinton. Former Trump White House adviser Steve Bannon has dubbed that meeting "treasonous."
The Trump-Russia-NRA Connection: Here’s What You Need to Know
As a result of this investigation, Spain convicted a Torshin underling – who reportedly called Torshin "boss" and "godfather" in recordings – and sentenced this man to nearly four years in prison for illegal transactions totaling more than $1.8 million. Torshin himself was not charged; a Spanish official told Bloomberg that Russia won't cooperate in cases against top politicians. Toshin has denied any wrongdoing.
NRA Connections
Torshin helped establish a Russian gun group called Right to Bear Arms, whose president calls Torshin "a great gun lover." Torshin is also a life member of the NRA – and forged ties to its leadership after attending the NRA's national convention in 2013. McClatchy reports that, in 2015, Toshin hosted "a high-level NRA delegation" during a week-long Moscow trip "that included meetings with influential Russian government and business figures." An attendee describes a debauched week: "They were killing us with vodka and the best Russian food," he told McClatchy. "The trip exceeded my expectations by logarithmic levels."
Trump Connections
At the May 2016 NRA convention in Louisville, Kentucky, where Donald Trump accepted the group's endorsement, Torshin shared a table at dinner with the candidate's son Donald Jr. According to Bloomberg, Torshin claimed to also have met now-president Trump at the convention, and that: "He keeps photos of the event on his computer tablet."
The 2016 NRA convention came off just as Russians were actively seeking contact with the Trump campaign – just weeks earlier, a Russian conduit told Trump staffer George Papadopoulos that Russia had "dirt" on Hillary Clinton, including thousands of her emails. – and hoping to set up a meeting with Trump and Putin.
According to the New York Times, Torshin tried to set up a dinner meeting in Louisville at the time of the NRA convention with then-candidate Trump – with the aim of connecting Trump with Putin. The request was conveyed through a Trump ally in the Christian conservative world, who reportedly sent the campaign an email with the subject line: "Russian backdoor overture and dinner invite." (Trump did not attend that dinner.)
Separately, an NRA member, Paul Erickson – who had been part of the 2015 NRA delegation to Moscow – wrote an email titled, "Kremlin Connection," to Trump campaign adviser Rick Dearborn, according to the New York Times. Erickson reportedly told the campaign that Russia was "quietly but actively seeking a dialogue with the U.S." and would be seeking "first contact" at the NRA convention.
Weeks later, in early June 2016, the trio of Donald Trump Jr., then-campaign manager Paul Manafort, and Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner took a meeting with a Putin-connected lawyer who had offered incriminating material on Hillary Clinton. Former Trump White House adviser Steve Bannon has dubbed that meeting "treasonous."
The Trump-Russia-NRA Connection: Here’s What You Need to Know
