The following article by Schuyler Kropf was posted on the Post and Courier website July 20, 2018:
The alleged female Russian spy who tried to make in-roads with the National Rifle Association and now faces federal conspiracy charges, spent Thanksgiving last year at U.S. Rep. Mark Sanford’s farm.
Sanford, R-S.C., confirmed to The Post and Courier he met Maria Butina during a post-Thankgiving annual barbecue that drew up to 300 people.
She visited the farm, known as Coosaw Plantation in Beaufort County, in 2017 with her boyfriend Paul Erickson.