Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
12 Russians Indicted For Hacking Democrats in 2016 Election
Bill McEwen updated website photo 2024
By Bill McEwen, News Director
Published 7 years ago on
July 13, 2018

Share

WASHINGTON — Twelve Russian intelligence officers were indicted on charges they hacked into Democratic email accounts during the 2016 U.S. presidential election and released stolen information in the months before Americans headed to the polls, the Justice Department said Friday.
Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein also said that Russian intelligence agents stole information on 500,000 U.S. voters after hacking a state U.S. election board.

“We have this stupidity going on. Pure stupidity.”President Donald Trump, describing special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation
The indictment — which comes days before President Donald Trump holds a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin — was the clearest allegation yet of Russian efforts to meddle in American politics. U.S. intelligence agencies have said the interference was aimed at helping the presidential campaign of Republican Donald Trump and harming the election bid of his Democratic opponent, Hillary Clinton.
The indictment lays out a sweeping and coordinated effort to break into key Democratic email accounts, including those belonging to the Democratic National Committee, the Clinton campaign and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.
The charges come as special counsel Robert Mueller investigates potential coordination between Russia and the Trump campaign to influence the presidential election. The indictment does not allege that Trump campaign associates were involved in the hacking efforts or that any American was knowingly in contact with Russian intelligence officers.

Trump Again Complains About Mueller Probe

Hours before the Justice Department announcement, Trump complained anew that the special counsel’s investigation is complicating his efforts to forge a better working relationship with Russia. Trump and Putin are scheduled to hold talks Monday in Finland, a meeting largely sought by Trump.
Trump said at a news conference Friday near London with British Prime Minister Theresa May that he wasn’t going into the meeting with Putin with “high expectations.”
“We do have a — a political problem where — you know in the United States we have this stupidity going on. Pure stupidity,” he said, referring to Mueller’s probe. “But it makes it very hard to do something with Russia. Anything you do, it’s always going to be, ‘Oh, Russia, he loves Russia.'”
“I love the United States,” Trump continued. “But I love getting along with Russia and China and other countries.”

No Allegations That Votes Were Changed

The indictment also does not allege that any vote tallies were altered by hacking.
Still, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein said the internet “allows foreign adversaries to attack Americans in new and unexpected ways. Free and fair elections are hard-fought and contentious and there will always be adversaries who work to exacerbate domestic differences and try to confuse, divide and conquer us.”
Before Friday, 20 people and three companies had been charged in the Mueller investigation. That includes four former Trump campaign and White House aides, three of whom have pleaded guilty to different crimes and agreed to cooperate, as well as 13 Russians accused of participating in a hidden but powerful social media campaign to sway American public opinion in the 2016 election.

How Russia Interfered

U.S. intelligence agencies have said the meddling was aimed at helping the Trump campaign and harming the election bid of Clinton. The effort also included bogus Facebook ads and social media postings that prosecutors say were aimed at influencing public opinion and sowing discord on hot-button social issues.
The indictment lays out a broad, coordinated effort starting in March 2016 to break into key Democratic email accounts, such as those belonging to the Democratic National Committee, the Clinton campaign and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Among those targeted was John Podesta, the Clinton campaign chairman.
The Kremlin denied anew that it tried to sway the election. “The Russian state has never interfered and has no intention of interfering in the U.S. elections,” Putin’s foreign affairs adviser, Yuri Ushakov, said Friday.
But the indictment identifies the defendants as officers with Russia’s Main Intelligence Directorate of the General Staff, also known as GRU. It accuses them of covertly monitoring the computers of dozens of Democratic officials and volunteers, implanting malicious computer code known as malware and using phishing emails to gain control of the accounts of people associated with the Clinton campaign.

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Trump Signs Proclamation Banning Travel From 12 Countries, CBS News Reports

DON'T MISS

Sunnyvale Pitmaster Smokes Fresno BBQ Competition for Golden Ticket to World Championships

DON'T MISS

What We Know About the Colorado Attack on Israeli Hostage Demonstrators

DON'T MISS

Visalia Motorists Take Note: Traffic Shift Coming to Riggin Avenue

DON'T MISS

Really, Secretary Rubio? I’m Lying About the Kids Dying Under Trump?

DON'T MISS

Judge Denies Release in Caleb Quick Killing. Defense Cites Alleged Assaults by Victim

DON'T MISS

Nebraska Is the Latest State to Ban Transgender Students From Girls’ Sports

DON'T MISS

US Vetoes UN Security Council Resolution Demanding an Immediate Gaza Ceasefire

DON'T MISS

International Basketball Comes to Fresno: Armenia vs. Costa Rica

DON'T MISS

Wired Wednesday: A New Research Hub in Southeast Fresno?

UP NEXT

Mexico to Announce ‘Measures’ Next Week if No Deal on US Metals Tariffs

UP NEXT

Pressure Mounts on Netanyahu as Opposition Moves to Dissolve Parliament

UP NEXT

Dutch Government Collapses After Far-Right Leader Wilders Quits Coalition

UP NEXT

Gaza Ministry Says Israel Kills More Than 30 Aid Seekers, Israel Denies

UP NEXT

Nonprofit Ship Sets Sail for Gaza After Drone Attack Setback

UP NEXT

Israel Blocks Ramallah Meeting With Arab Ministers, Israeli Official Says

UP NEXT

Trump Amplifies Outlandish Robot Biden Conspiracy Theory

UP NEXT

Israeli Forces Open Fire a Kilometer Away From Gaza Aid Site, Killing 3, Health Officials Say

UP NEXT

Ukraine and Russia End Their Latest Round of Direct Peace Talks in Istanbul

UP NEXT

American Doctors Are Moving to Canada To Escape the Trump Administration

Bill McEwen,
News Director
Bill McEwen is news director and columnist for GV Wire. He joined GV Wire in August 2017 after 37 years at The Fresno Bee. With The Bee, he served as Opinion Editor, City Hall reporter, Metro columnist, sports columnist and sports editor through the years. His work has been frequently honored by the California Newspapers Publishers Association, including authoring first-place editorials in 2015 and 2016. Bill and his wife, Karen, are proud parents of two adult sons, and they have two grandsons. You can contact Bill at 559-492-4031 or at Send an Email

Did That Clint Eastwood Interview Happen? Yes, Kind Of.

2 hours ago

Biden’s IRS Doubled Audits on the Wealthy, Data Shows

2 hours ago

Millions Would Lose Their Obamacare Coverage Under Trump’s Bill

2 hours ago

New CA Bill Would Streamline Solar Conversion for Dry Farmland

2 hours ago

Supreme Court Rules Catholic Charity Exempt From State Unemployment Taxes

3 hours ago

Alonso Muscles Up With 2 HRs, 5 RBIs as Mets Belt Dodgers

3 hours ago

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Fermin Solorzano

3 hours ago

Supreme Court Rejects Mexico’s $10B Gun Lawsuit Against American Gun Manufacturers

3 hours ago

Trump Says After Xi Call That US and China Will Resume Trade Talks

3 hours ago

Procter & Gamble Slashes Workforce as Tariffs Drive Up Costs

3 hours ago

Derek Carr Explains Mysterious Retirement. He Didn’t Want to ‘Just Take the Saints’ Money’

Former New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr chose retirement over collecting a paycheck while dealing with a serious shoulder injury, c...

17 minutes ago

17 minutes ago

Derek Carr Explains Mysterious Retirement. He Didn’t Want to ‘Just Take the Saints’ Money’

32 minutes ago

What Do Valley Leaders Say About Trump’s Threat to Yank High-Speed Rail Funding?

60 minutes ago

Were Cuts in Rooftop Solar Payments Legal? CA Supreme Court Hears Arguments

2 hours ago

Did That Clint Eastwood Interview Happen? Yes, Kind Of.

2 hours ago

Biden’s IRS Doubled Audits on the Wealthy, Data Shows

2 hours ago

Millions Would Lose Their Obamacare Coverage Under Trump’s Bill

2 hours ago

New CA Bill Would Streamline Solar Conversion for Dry Farmland

3 hours ago

Supreme Court Rules Catholic Charity Exempt From State Unemployment Taxes

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend