Maria Butina: Russian agent who tried to infiltrate the NRA released from prison and deported

Maria Butina, the Russian woman who admitted to being a spy seeking to infiltrate political groups like the National Rifle Association (NRA) and Moscow, is due to be released from prison ahead of her deportation.

Butina, 31, was sentenced to 18 months in a prison earlier this year after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy.

Now after being given credit for time served she has been released from a low security prison in Tallahassee to a deportation centre in Miami. She is then set to arrive in Moscow on Saturday.

The Siberian native, a former graduate student at American University in Washington, confessed to having conspired with a Russian official and two Americans to join the NRA.

From there Butina had planned to open up unofficial lines of communication between Moscow and gun lobbyists, with the group holding significant sway with President Donald Trump.

Federal prosecutors said Butina had not engaged in traditional spycraft, instead interacting with Republican circles to gain favour and promote better relations between Washington and Russia.

The charge stemmed from Butina's link to Alexander Torshin, a deputy governor of Russia's central bank who later became the subject of sanctions from the US Treasury Department. Washington alleged she had been directed by Mr Torshin.

One of the two Americans meanwhile was activist and republican campaigner Paul Erickson, Butina’s boyfriend who was not charged for his links to Butina.

The Russian also arranged dinners and attended events with prominent politicians during her time in the US – and in 2015 appeared at a Trump campaign event and asked him a question about whether he wanted better relations with her home country.

Mr Trump responded by telling Butina that he would "get along very nicely with Putin."

While it is unclear what reception Butina will receive upon her return to Moscow, Vladimir Putin has previously expressed his anger over the case while arguing her innocence.

“It’s an outrage” he said in April “It’s not clear what she was convicted of or what crime she committed. I think it’s a prime example of saving face.

“They arrested her and put the girl in jail. But there was nothing on her, so in order not to look totally stupid they gave her, fixed her up, with an 18-month sentence to show that she was guilty of something.”

Additional reporting by Reuters.