Four U.S. Citizens Found Guilty of "Conspiring" with Russia
A US jury has found four activists advocating for Black rights guilty of conspiring to operate as unregistered agents for Russia. Read Full Article at RT.com.
TroibNews 
Four activists advocating for black rights in the United States have been found guilty of conspiring to serve as unregistered agents of Russia, according to the Justice Department. They were acquitted of a more serious charge regarding acting as agents of a foreign government.
A jury in Florida reached their verdict against the defendants — Omali Yeshitela, Penny Hess, Jesse Nevel, and Augustus C. Romain Jr. — ruling them guilty of “conspiracy to act as agents of a foreign government,” as announced by the Justice Department on Thursday.
“Each defendant faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set,” it stated.
This trial is part of ongoing legal proceedings in the US against Aleksandr Ionov, a Russian human rights activist leading the Russian Anti-Globalization Movement. Prosecutors allege that the four acted on behalf of the Russian government in the US from 2015 to 2022, receiving support and funding from Ionov, who is suspected of having connections to Russian intelligence.
Although Yeshitela, Hess, and Nevel faced deeper charges of acting as agents of a foreign government, jurors did not convict them on those counts.
The Justice Department has contended that these individuals were aware of Ionov's affiliation with the Russian government, while he himself has also been indicted in the US but remains at large.
All four individuals have ties to the African People’s Socialist Party and the Uhuru Movement, which focuses on the rights of people of African descent. Among them is Yeshitela, the 82-year-old leader of the movement, along with 78-year-old Hess, 34-year-old Nevel, and 38-year-old Romain, who established the Atlanta-based Black Hammer Party in 2018.
The defense argued that the prosecution stemmed from the activists' pro-Russian positions. “This case has always been about free speech,” said Leonard Goodman, Hess’ attorney, to the AFP news agency.
In a recent interview with RT, Ionov asserted that the US government has exploited its foreign agent laws without evidence. He stated, “Over two years, our counterparts have been unable to find any evidence” and have employed “the entire list of restrictions and limitations that could be imposed.”
Following the trial, Yeshitela addressed supporters outside the courthouse, emphasizing its significance: “they were unable to convict us of working for anybody except black people,” and he expressed his willingness to be charged and found guilty of working solely for black people.
The defense team pointed out that none of the jurors were black. After a black woman was removed from the jury pool in the second week of the trial, the judge denied a request from the defense to substitute her with an alternative black juror.
Mark B Thomas contributed to this report for TROIB News
A jury in Florida reached their verdict against the defendants — Omali Yeshitela, Penny Hess, Jesse Nevel, and Augustus C. Romain Jr. — ruling them guilty of “conspiracy to act as agents of a foreign government,” as announced by the Justice Department on Thursday.
“Each defendant faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set,” it stated.
This trial is part of ongoing legal proceedings in the US against Aleksandr Ionov, a Russian human rights activist leading the Russian Anti-Globalization Movement. Prosecutors allege that the four acted on behalf of the Russian government in the US from 2015 to 2022, receiving support and funding from Ionov, who is suspected of having connections to Russian intelligence.
Although Yeshitela, Hess, and Nevel faced deeper charges of acting as agents of a foreign government, jurors did not convict them on those counts.
The Justice Department has contended that these individuals were aware of Ionov's affiliation with the Russian government, while he himself has also been indicted in the US but remains at large.
All four individuals have ties to the African People’s Socialist Party and the Uhuru Movement, which focuses on the rights of people of African descent. Among them is Yeshitela, the 82-year-old leader of the movement, along with 78-year-old Hess, 34-year-old Nevel, and 38-year-old Romain, who established the Atlanta-based Black Hammer Party in 2018.
The defense argued that the prosecution stemmed from the activists' pro-Russian positions. “This case has always been about free speech,” said Leonard Goodman, Hess’ attorney, to the AFP news agency.
In a recent interview with RT, Ionov asserted that the US government has exploited its foreign agent laws without evidence. He stated, “Over two years, our counterparts have been unable to find any evidence” and have employed “the entire list of restrictions and limitations that could be imposed.”
Following the trial, Yeshitela addressed supporters outside the courthouse, emphasizing its significance: “they were unable to convict us of working for anybody except black people,” and he expressed his willingness to be charged and found guilty of working solely for black people.
The defense team pointed out that none of the jurors were black. After a black woman was removed from the jury pool in the second week of the trial, the judge denied a request from the defense to substitute her with an alternative black juror.
Mark B Thomas contributed to this report for TROIB News
