A judge delayed the sentencing of Maria Butina, who is accused of spying on the US for Russia, at the request of a prosecutor citing her ongoing co-operation, during a hearing from a Washington DC courthouse on Tuesday.
Robert Driscoll, Butina’s defence lawyer, hoped his client would be able to leave the US after sentencing.
“The question is going be the length of the sentence, presuming we get a short sentence that’s time served then the process of deportation will start immediately,” Driscoll told journalists outside court.
Butina, a former student at American University and a gun rights activist, admitted in December to conspiring to act as an agent for the Kremlin without registering in the US. She was the first Russian to be convicted of working to influence US policy during the 2016 presidential race.
Her next court hearing is set for March 28.