More Boris, more Russian agents, and more dark money connections

Michael Gove‬⁩ retweeted – and quickly deleted – an image of ⁦‪Boris Johnson‬⁩ and Russian Agent Josef Mifsud used by ⁦‪Devin Nunes‬⁩ when questioning Robert Mueller in the 2016 Trump Russia investigation. One statement from that investigation ended with the words – “have our NATO allies or Boris Johnson have been compromised?”

 

This is the tweet by Michael Gove – then quickly deleted:

 

 

You can read all about Joseph Mifsud HERE and HERE – but briefly, he is a Maltese academic. In 2016, he became involved with George Papadopoulos, an advisor to the Donald Trump presidential campaign, and was later accused of being a link between that campaign and Russia. Mifsud, also of the London Academy of Diplomacy, is known to have mixed with Britain’s foreign secretary – at the time Boris Johnson – and a bunch of ex-CIA people, but who also helped connect Team Trump with the Russians. He was also the link that brought to light the information that the Russians had dirt on Hillary Clinton with thousands of emails.

Mifsud is well connected. He was a principal in the London Centre of International Law Practice, a professorial teaching fellow at the University of Stirling in Scotland and director of the London Academy of Diplomacy, where he served as director from 2012 until it closed in 2016. It is known Mifsud started making numerous trips to Russia in 2010 and is documented to have been mixing with some highly dubious characters. There, he regularly attended meetings of the Valdai Discussion Club, an annual conference held in Russia, backed by the Kremlin and attended by Vladimir Putin.

In a 2017 interview, he claimed to be a member of the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR),  it turned out he wasn’t. Mifsud was also caught in the George Papadopoulos scandal in the USA. In April 2016 in the run-up to the American election, Trump foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos says Mifsud told him that the Russians had “dirt” on Hillary Clinton in the form of thousands of emails, according to court documents.

In April 2016, Mifsud reportedly introduced Papadopoulos to Ivan Timofeev, who works for a think tank close to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a Dr Stephan Roh, a German multi-millionaire.

Roh then becomes a visiting lecturer at the London Academy of Diplomacy. Roh and his Russian-born wife, Olga, bought a home in London and a derelict castle in Scotland – buying it made them the Baron and Baroness of Inchdrewer.

Roh’s wife is extraordinarily well-connected, running an upmarket fashion company in London’s Mayfair. Among her best customers is Britain’s former prime minister. (Photograph of Theresa May meeting the Queen in an Olga Roh coat.)

 

 

Dr Roh bought Severnvale Nuclear Services Ltd from its one-man-band owner, British nuclear scientist Dr John Harbottle. He then invited Dr Harbottle on an all-expenses paid trip to a conference in Moscow. Under Dr Harbottle – the company’s turnover had been £42,000 a year. Within three years under Dr Roh, Severnvale Nuclear, with just two employees, was turning over more than $43m (£24m) a year.

 

 

There is not much information regarding this company, how it generated so much money with just two employees is unknown. It was subsequently wound up but a very similar company going by the name of Severnale Nuclear Trading and another ending with Services (but not a limited company) has emerged and now located in Olverston, Bristol.  As of August this year, others investigating this company have found out little information. Was this a money-laundering operation? Or was it used as a way of ‘donating’ to campaigns legal or otherwise? It is doubtful given its secrecy, lack of website, form of operation or otherwise that it does anything normal in terms of business.

 

 

 

Stephan Roh is known to use shell companies, tax havens and other devices to hide money and keep details away from prying eyes. He was pulled aside by the FBI at Immigration, during a trip to New York in October 2017, and questioned for hours in respect of the heavily investigated allegations that Russia meddled with the 2016 US presidential race.

Forgetting whether we believe the Russians meddled in the Trump campaign – the point here is this. Boris Johnson was Britain’s foreign secretary from 2016 to 2018. In that position, he was not trusted either by the PM of the day, Theresa May or the security services and was kept away from critical information of national security. Johnson is well known to people such as Mifsud and his connections such as Roh – who lead straight back to either the Kremlin and/or dodgy money – both of which are deeply involved in the 2016 Trump campaign which then spilt over into the Brexit campaign. Boris Johnson is the frontman to a campaign where illegal dark-money was used, which has now been reported to the Crown Prosecution service by the police to prosecute in court.

The Brexit campaign is known to be mired in illegal dark-money operations – the origin of that money is, of course, largely unknown at present. As we wrote yesterday in Boris Johnson’s Russia Report – Leaked, Britain’s security services are at the heart of producing evidence about these connections. In the report there is a statement that leaves no misunderstanding of what is going on:

 

“Moscow had built up a network of friendly British diplomats, lawyers, parliamentarians and other influencers from across the political spectrum – described as “potentially the most significant threat to the UK’s institutions and its ways of life.”

 

That report also stated that – “Witnesses also told the committee that Russian agents were targeting research roles in the House of Commons, acquiring British citizenship to funnel cash to political parties and employing public relations firms to cleanse reputations.“

Boris Johnson’s most senior strategist Dominic Cummings and policy/manifesto writer Munira Mirza, both have deep connections to Russia. Cummings has questions to answer. Mirza is a former member of the Revolutionary Communist Party.

The Conservative party are now known to have accepted large sums of money from Russian donors for this December’s campaign. What do Russian’s want achieved with their money?

Unbelievably – these three people, Johnson, Cummings and Mirza are running the country and doing so aided by the Russians. Just as astounding is that the “Russia” File is being suppressed by none other than – Boris Johnson. And as the general public is constantly told by the government when it comes to its mass surveillance architecture – if there was nothing to hide, there’s nothing to be worried about. So why would this report be suppressed and why would Dominic Grieve, the Chairman of the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament who produced it and the national security services who put so much evidence to it be so angry about it being suppressed?

Dominic Grieve said just a few days ago – “This dossier examines allegations that Russian money has flowed into British politics in general and to the Conservative party in particular & also includes claims that Russia launched a major influence operation in 2016 to support Brexit.”

 

(Main image – Boris Johnson and Joseph Mifsud in the background, Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.), middle, questions former Special Counsel Robert Mueller during the House Intelligence Committee hearing about his report on Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election)

 

 

 

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