Russia-Gate and the Chicken Coop

Summer Evenings

During the summer of 2016, Myria and I were living at her parents' home in Ann Arbor while we waited to move into our new house. The house, located on Wellington Cross, belonged to Myria's parents, Maria and Petros, who were spending the summer in Cyprus.

Beginning in late July and continuing through September, Paul Cronin and his twin sister, Alison, spent most evenings at the house with Duaa Altaee and me.

We usually gathered on the large screened-in back porch, which we jokingly called the "chicken coop." I'd order pizza and chicken wings from Pizza House, and we'd spend hours talking on the porch.

Myria was busy with work and taking care of our young children, so she wasn't part of most of these conversations. It was just Paul, Alison, Duaa, and me.

Afterward, Duaa and I would tell Myria what Paul had been saying. She was every bit as skeptical as we were and couldn't understand why Paul and Alison kept coming over night after night to tell us these increasingly strange stories.

At first, the conversations were completely ordinary. We talked about medicine, family, work, and current events.

Gradually, however, they became anything but ordinary.

Each evening seemed to bring a new story. Despite my skepticism, I found myself wondering what Paul would say next.

The First Story

One evening, the conversation took an unexpected turn.

Paul told us that he and Alison had been members of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) and had worked with foreign intelligence services. He also said that physicians made "near perfect cover" for intelligence work.

I remember looking at Paul and telling him I didn't believe him.

Russia

Then Paul went further.

He told us there was a Russian effort underway to influence the 2016 presidential election in Donald Trump's favor. He spoke about Vladimir Putin, an alleged sex tape involving Donald Trump, and what he claimed would be a direct hack of the election.

Duaa and I looked at each other. We didn't know what to think. The whole thing sounded crazy.

I shook my head and told Paul I didn't believe him.

Mid-August 2016

By mid-August, the conversations had become increasingly strange.

Around the time Maria and Petros were preparing to return from Cyprus, a couple of unexpected incidents added to the growing sense that something unusual was going on.

One day, Myria noticed Ella Kazerooni sitting alone in a parked car outside her parents' house on the quiet cul-de-sac where we were staying. Thinking she might need directions or assistance, Myria walked over to the car. As soon as Ella saw Myria approaching, she drove away without saying a word.

A few days later, while Paul and Alison were visiting, Paul showed us what he said was a text message from Ella Kazerooni that read, "Good job Paulie," congratulating him for "making sure" Maria and Petros did not return to Ann Arbor.

Neither incident made any sense to us.

The Ella incident gave me another reason to ask Paul about Maria.

I asked him several times over the course of the summer whether he knew anything improper about her.

Every time, he told me he didn't.

Then Paul Went Further Still

Paul said he had worked for Russian intelligence and had a direct relationship with FBI Director James Comey.

He also told us that the University of Michigan was a select institution where U.S. intelligence and Russian intelligence cooperated, and described what he believed was a Russian money laundering operation involving Governor Rick Snyder and the State of Michigan.

Once again, I told Paul I didn't believe him.

It didn't change anything.

Paul and Alison continued asking Duaa and me what intelligence agency we worked for.

We both laughed and told them we didn't work for any intelligence agency.

The questions kept coming.

Bob Mueller

After one particularly extraordinary conversation, I finally asked Paul a simple question.

"If all of this is true, how could they possibly get away with it?"

Paul didn't hesitate.

"They'll bring in Bob Mueller to clean things up."

I looked at him and said exactly what I'd been saying all summer.

"Paul, I don't believe a word you're saying."

The End of the Summer

In early October 2016, Paul, Alison, and their family left for Ireland to care for Paul's mother. They did not return until after the presidential election.

The nightly conversations on the "chicken coop" porch came to an end.

At the time, I was convinced that Paul's stories were simply unbelievable.

Supporting Document

Many of the events described in this chapter were later memorialized in a sworn affidavit executed on September 1, 2018. Readers interested in comparing this narrative with that affidavit may find it here:

September 2018 Sworn Affidavit Concerning Russia-Gate-Related Statements Attributed to Paul Cronin

Core Archive Documents

From Paul Cronin's "This Will Ruin All Our Lives" to "I Will"
Case Model
Case Index
Federal Record Summary
Timeline: Town and Gown (2014–2026)

Selected Reporting

Brad Foerster, MD PhD

Brad Foerster is a FOIA advocate documenting requests, transparency disputes, and accountability investigations involving public agencies, universities, police oversight, and Russia-Gate related inquiries. His work compiles original documents, timelines, and analysis of public records and institutional responses. Brad is also a board-certified radiologist, author of Town & Gown, and has published over 40 peer-reviewed articles. Brad lives in Potomac, Maryland with his family and is active in the Montgomery County Medical Society and the Takoma Park U.S. & World History Book Club.