The relatives of Maria Butina, a Russian national held in US custody on charges of spying, have launched a fund in her support, trying to find some financial aid for the prisoner's defense, Butina's sister Marina said.
BARNAUL (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th September, 2018) The relatives of Maria Butina, a Russian national held in US custody on charges of spying, have launched a fund in her support, trying to find some financial aid for the prisoner's defense, Butina's sister Marina said.
"My dear friends, my sister Maria Butina is in a difficult and unfair situation. Maria and our family are currently in an urgent need of your support and any possible aid. A fund to collect donations for her defense has been created. Any, even a symbolic donation from you or your friends will be of an enormous support. We cannot deal with this problem alone," Marina Butina wrote on her VKontakte blog.
Valery Butin, the prisoner's father, said in an interview with Russia's Izvestia newspaper released on Monday that Maria's family would like to go to the United States to visit her but did not have such an opportunity at the moment.
Butina, a recent student and a political activist, was arrested in Washington, DC in mid-July on suspicions of acting as an agent for a foreign government. She has denied the accusations. Butina, who faces up to 15 years in jail, is now being held in a prison in the US city of Alexandria, Virginia.
