12 Russian intelligence officers indicted for hacking in 2016 election

A grand jury in the special counsel probe has returned the indictment of 12 Russian intelligence officers for hacking-related offenses in the 2016 election, the Justice Department announced Friday.

The DOJ says the Russians intended to interfere with the 2016 presidential election, and all 12 defendants are members of the GRU, a Russian intelligence agency. The indictment alleges the defendants began spearphishing volunteers and employees of Hillary Clinton’s campaign, and were able to steal usernames and passworks, eventually hacking into the networks of the Democratic National Campaign Committee and Democratic National Committee.

“There is no allegation in this indictment that Americans knew they were corresponding with Russian intelligence officers,” Rosenstein said in his announcement.

The charges come just days before President Trump is set to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Helsinki, Finland. Rosenstein said he briefed Mr. Trump on the indictment earlier this week.

The charges come after Mueller’s investigation has already led to the indictment of 12 Russian nationals earlier this year.

The indictment charges 11 of the defendants with conspiracy to commit computer crimes, eight counts of aggravated identity theft, and conspiracy to launder money, according to the special counsel’s office. Two of the defendants are charged with a separate conspiracy to commit computer crimes.

In the face of alleged foreign interference, Rosenstein urged unity and patriotism against foreign interference.

“The partisan warfare fueled by modern technology does not fairly reflect the grace, dignity and unity of the American people,” Rosenstein said.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

Read the press release from the DOJ: