Magnitsky was a Russian lawyer and auditor who in 2007 and 2008 uncovered an alleged vast corruption scheme involving about $230 million, according to a federal indictment by the U.S. Southern District of New York in 2013. The alleged tax fraud scheme came at the expense of an investment firm, Hermitage Capital, owned by an American investor, Bill Browder, according to the U.S. indictment.
Donald Trump Jr. reportedly received an email indicating information to be revealed in a meeting with a Russian lawyer was part of a Russian government effort to help his dad's campaign, according to The New York Times.
Many want to know who the Russian attorney is and the extent of her connections with the Kremlin. But what you won’t find is Natalia Veselnitskaya’s age or Instagram account. There’s also no information on Natalia Veselnitskaya’s family, just her work, and up until she met with Donald Jr., she was a relatively unknown lawyer.
Veselnitskaya has fought against the Magnitsky Act in both her home country and in the United States, and it was the topic of discussion during her Trump meeting.
Veselnitskaya is now making headlines for her meeting with Trump Jr. in 2016, which also raised eyebrows surrounding the allegations (and several investigations) into the Kremlin’s meddling in the presidential election. According to three advisers to the White House who were briefed on the meeting, Trump Jr.
Natalia Veselnitskaya is a Russian attorney who has represented several state-owned Russian businesses, according to the Times. In 2003, she launched her own law firm, Kamerton Consulting.
Donald Trump Jr. said in a statement that an acquaintance who he knew from the 2013 Miss Universe Pageant in Russia had asked him to have a meeting with Veselnitskaya. Trump Jr. said he was told Veselnitskaya could have “information helpful to the [Trump] campaign,” although he was not given her name at the time.
Given the ongoing investigations by multiple congressional committees and special council Robert Mueller into any potential collusion between the Trump campaign and Russian interests, any interaction between Trump Jr. and a Moscow-linked lawyer is bound to raise concerns.