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| In this June 21, 2017 photo, former FBI Director Robert Mueller, the special counsel probing Russian interference in the 2016 election, departs Capitol Hill following a closed door meeting in Washington. A 2001 Justice Department memo warned that no nation, including the United States, was immune from the threat posed by Russian organized crime. The special counsel investigation is bringing attention to Russian efforts to meddle in democratic processes, the type of intelligence gathering that in the past has relied on hired hackers. It's not clear how much the probe by Mueller will center on the criminal underbelly of Moscow, but he's already picked some lawyers with experience confronting organized crime. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) |
The U.S. government has
long warned that Russian organized crime posed a threat to democratic
institutions, including "criminally linked oligarchs" who might
collude with the Russian government to undermine business competition.
