The Department of Justice unsealed an indictment Wednesday alleging that two Russian nationals working for President Vladimir Putin’s government funneled millions of dollars into a media company run by anti-Trump conservative influencer Lauren Chen.
The indictment charged that the videos published by the company contained “commentary on events and issues in the United States, such as immigration, inflation, and other topics related to domestic and foreign policy.” The company allegedly had business arrangements of varying depths and duration with popular influencers such as Tim Pool, Benny Johnson, Dave Rubin, and Lauren Southern as talent.
“Should these allegations prove true, I as well as the other personalities and commentators were deceived and are victims. I cannot speak for anyone else at the company as to what they do or to what they are instructed,” Pool said. Former Breitbart News editor and Trump administration official Sebastian Gorka said he had been approached by Chen to produce content for Tenet, and had turned down the money after doing his “due diligence.”