US charges Bijan Rafiekian, a former business partner of Michael Flynn, with secretly lobbying for Turkey
- Bijan Rafiekian has been indicted on charges including conspiracy to act as an agent of a foreign government
- He was a business partner of Michael Flynn, Donald Trump’s former national security adviser
An ex-business partner of Michael Flynn, US President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser, was charged with undisclosed lobbying aimed at ensuring the extradition to Turkey of a Muslim cleric living in the United States.
Flynn’s former partner, Bijan Rafiekian, was indicted on two criminal counts in the Eastern District of Virginia, including conspiracy to act as an agent of a foreign government, according to an indictment unsealed on Monday.
Ekim Alptekin, a Turkish businessman, was also charged in the indictment for allegedly plotting to discredit and cause the extradition of Turkish Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen who lives in exile in the United States.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has blamed Gulen for stoking a failed coup against him in 2016. Gulen denies that.
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A representative for Alptekin, 41, who was charged with six criminal counts, said she did not immediately have a comment.