Alleged Russian spy Maria Butina pleads guilty to engaging in conspiracy against U.S.

Butina said she acted “under direction of” a Russian official whom CNN has identified as Alexander Torshin, the recently retired deputy governor of the Central Bank of Russia.

“Butina sought to establish unofficial lines of communication with Americans having power and influence over US politics,” the prosecutor said in a Washington courtroom.

Her guilty plea and agreement to cooperate comes with the hope that prosecutors will ask for a reduced sentence. She agreed to turn over any evidence of crimes she is aware of, submit a full accounting of her financial assets, sit for interviews with law enforcement (and waive right to counsel during those interviews) and testify before grand juries or in trials in Washington or elsewhere.