legal entities under the name project lata, according to a u.s. criminal complaint. cnn has obtained video of this flashy business center in st. petersburg where several of the firms are now apparently working. and month ject lata is putting down more cash to harm america. company financial records in the u.s. criminal complaint reviewed by cnn show huge budget increases since 2013, especially in 2018. around 650 million rubles, almost $10 million in the first six months of this year alone. though prosecutors say not all of that money goes to operations targeting the u.s. it is essential to look at these efforts as consistent and persistent as opposed to they rally around a specific geopolitical event or an election. the way that they actually gain influence is by talking to these
other businesses, but he is not a state official. we have nothing to do with him. reporter: but he clearly has major dealings with the russian state. a firm linked to him runs a mercenary company active in syria that even a takttacked u.s.-backed forces there. this is from russian state tv of a meeting between russian officials and sudan s president, wanted by the international criminal court for severe human rights abuses. his firm tried to push back on the special counsel s indictment arguing, like president trump, that the mueller investigation is a witch-hunt. on thursday, a federal judge refused to dismiss the indictment charging his company with having a role in russia s efforts to interfere in the 2016 u.s. presidential election. meantime, cyber security experts say project lata s trolling experts are expanding in the united states and elsewhere. their message, unabashed and