Were you trolled on Twitter by these Russians promoting Trump, bashing Kasich in Ohio?

COLUMBUS - Russian Twitter trolls stoked anti-Muslim sentiments after an attack at Ohio State University. They bashed Gov. John Kasich and promoted now-President Donald Trump in Ohio during the 2016 election. 

An Enquirer review of more than 500 tweets sent by Russian-linked accounts – including two named in a federal indictment – also shows an effort to question the validity of votes and attack Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton in Ohio.

In January, Twitter identified 3,814 accounts it had determined were linked to Russia. The social media site suspended those accounts and deleted their tweets. 

Some of those tweets are still accessible through an NBC news archive of 203,000 tweets from 453 Russia-linked accounts. More than one-fourth of those accounts targeted Ohio – a key swing state in national elections.

"Yes, if Trump's Muslim travel ban were in place, the Ohio State attack would have never happened!" wrote one Russia-linked account hours after 11 people were injured there.

In November 2016, Ohio State University student Abdul Razak Ali Artan – a Somali refugee – injured several people by ramming some with a car and stabbing others with a knife. A campus police officer, Alan Horujko, fatally shot Artan shortly after the attack began, preventing additional injuries.

"By the way, Ohio State University is a 'Gun Free Zone.' It'd rather be 'Refugee Free Zone,'" wrote @thefoundingson, an account linked to Russian Twitter trolls.  

"Ohio State University situation confirms that I made the only right decision by voting for @realDonaldTrump #MakeAmericaGreatAgain," the account wrote. Ohio State University officials declined to comment about the posts. 

Those were not the only anti-Muslim sentiments shared in Ohio. In September, @ten_gop, one of two accounts active in Ohio that were named in a recent federal indictment of Russian nationals who meddled in the 2016 election, tweeted: "Ohio HONOR KILLING: Muslim Father Shoots Daughter in the Head!!! BAN ISLAM!" 

The tweet was an apparent reference to the shooting death of Cleveland-area pharmacist Tahani Mansour, whose father said he killed her because she disrespected his rules.

That same Twitter account stoked racial tensions in Milwaukee during riots there in August 2016.

The Russia-linked accounts also trolled Ohio's governor, a GOP primary rival to Trump. Kasich skipped much of the Republican National Convention in his home state and refused to vote for Trump for president. Instead, he wrote in the name of Arizona Sen. John McCain.

In September, @kateritterrrr wrote, "Yeah, I deleted all of my Kasich stuff, that guy is the lowest of the low! Why Ohio supports him I'll never know!" Closer to the election, the account retweeted a headline from right-leaning website LifeZette: "Kasich's NeverTrump Vote Embodies What's Wrong with Elites." 

Those tweets worry the Ohio governor. "One of the untold stories is Russian interference in the primary to aid Trump. One of many reasons Director (Robert) Mueller must be allowed to finish his investigation unfettered," Kasich spokesman Chris Schimpf said, referencing the former FBI director's investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election.

Other tweets mocked Clinton's ground game or attendance at events. "CLINTON  and KAINE CANCELLED  #OHIO EVENT Due to LACK OF INTEREST! #NeverHillary #VoteTrump2016 #MAGA " retweeted @leroylovesusa. 

The Clinton campaign said at the time that a Cleveland event was canceled due to time constraints. Instead, she and running mate Tim Kaine went to Youngstown and Columbus.

The tweets also questioned the legitimacy of Ohio's voting process – a key complaint from candidate Trump as the election approached and it appeared he could lose. 

"5-6 Voting Machines In Ohio County Switch Republican To Democrat Votes!" retweeted @march_for_trump, another account referenced in the federal indictment. 

"All Fellow Deplorables. Especially in Ohio@JohnKasich is having meetings with POTUS. BEWARE OF PLAN TO RIG OHIO VOTE," shared another account.

But those claims were false, according to the Ohio secretary of state's office, which oversees elections. Russians also attempted to hack 21 states' voting systems, including Ohio's, but no votes were changed, the secretary of state said.

"The facts here in Ohio have not changed – our elections system is secure and uncompromised," Secretary of State Jon Husted said in a statement. "It is sad how some people, who are desperate for attention, use social media to spread lies and falsehoods.”

While many of the Russian trolls' tweets appear to favor Trump, some were unbiased. One account retweeted an Ohio Democratic Party message reminding people to vote. Another shared a story about Luke Fickell being named the University of Cincinnati's head football coach.