American Ex-FBI agent receives prison sentence for spying for Russian oligarch

A former high-ranking American FBI agent, who agreed to work as a covert investigator for Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, has been sentenced in New York to over four years in prison.

As reported by Financial Times, he pleaded guilty in August to violating US sanctions and money laundering laws. Charles McGonigal, previously the special agent in charge of counter-intelligence at the FBI’s New York office and an investigator of Deripaska during his tenure in the agency, was arrested in January.

He faced charges for assisting the oligarch in investigating his business rival and fellow oligarch, Vladimir Potanin.

Assistant US attorney Hagan Scotten, before the sentencing on December 14, emphasized that McGonigal "abused his position" as one of the world's most important counter-intelligence officers. Scotten noted that the former agent sought to "turn his credentials into cash" and aimed to make millions of dollars in retirement through his connections.