ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A Tampa-based grand jury formally charged a Russian national with spearheading a multi-year influence campaign using U.S. political groups to spread pro-Russian propaganda and interfere in elections, including those in St. Petersburg.
Aleksandr Viktorovich Ionov, who is a resident of Moscow, faces a charge of conspiring to have U.S. citizens act as illegal agents of the Russian government, according to a news release from the Department of Justice.
FBI agents said the Uhuru Movement is involved. The Uhuru House in St. Petersburg was raided by FBI agents in July 2022. Uhuru Movement officials denied involvement in the FBI investigation.
Agents carried out what it called a court-authorized warrant at the Uhuru House, located at 1245 18th Ave. S., which is the Florida-based headquarters of a Black international socialist group. They were seen carrying out unidentified boxes for hours.
For the first time since the raid, the chairman of the Uhuru Movement is speaking out in our community against the FBI investigation.
"I ain't never worked for a Russian. Never, never, never," chairman for the Uhuru Movement, Omali Yeshitela said.
The chairman spoke during a press conference on Monday afternoon for over an hour. He denied the FBI accusations, referring to them as claims.
"They claim the Russians told us to say this, but I guarantee no Russian ever told me to say anything," Yeshitela said.
Yeshitela said he knows Ionov, who was mentioned in the FBI's indictment.
"I know him because I attended a conference that was called by this anti-globalism movement there," Yeshitela explained.
Yeshitela explained the goal of the Uhuru Movement is to have a world free from oppression.
Officials with the U.S. Attorney's Office declined to comment saying, "No additional information is available at this time."
The FBI declined to comment on the press conference and Yeshitela claims he is innocent. The FBI explained the investigation is ongoing.