Activists Convicted of Conspiring to Act as Russian Agents

An unusual federal trial detailing the inner workings of a Russian influence operation in the United States ended on Thursday with jurors convicting four members of Black power groups of conspiring to act as agents of the Russian government. The defendants were acquitted of failing to register as Russian agents, a more serious charge.

Prosecutors had argued during the weeklong trial in Tampa that the defendants had engaged in a seven-year conspiracy to sow division in American politics. The defendants countered that the government was trying to criminalize their support of Russian ideology, which they argued was protected political speech.