Conviction for Russian National Campaign Gifts Valid, Court Says

A New York jury’s conviction of Andrey Kukushkin for funneling funds from a Russian investor to political candidates to build support for a planned cannabis business was affirmed by the Second Circuit Wednesday.

The jury in October 2021 found that Kukushkin conspired with co-defendants, Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, to illegally donate Andrey Muraviev’s money to political candidates in Florida and Nevada. Kukushkin was sentenced to a year and a day imprisonment in March 2022.

Kukushkin argued that the district court should have told the jury that a defendant must know the meaning and specific provisions of the Federal Election ...