Paul Manafort signalled Friday he intends to plead guilty ahead of a second trial in the U.S. as prosecutors filed new charging documents against Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman.
The charges in Friday’s filing were contained in criminal information, a type of charging document that can only be filed with a defendant’s consent, and typically signals a deal has been reached.
In the new filing, prosecutors dropped the bulk of the charges against Manafort, including just two counts that resemble in many ways the original allegations made in an indictment last year. The charges include conspiracy against the United States and conspiracy to obstruct justice.
Manafort is expected to appear in a U.S. district courtroom in Washington, D.C., later Friday morning.
It is not clear whether any agreement with prosecutors would require Manafort to co-operate with special counsel Robert Mueller’s ongoing investigation into possible co-ordination between the Trump campaign and Russia.
Manafort was facing a second trial set to begin on Monday on charges related to Ukrainian political consulting work, including failing to register as a foreign agent.
Jurors in Virginia last month found Manafort guilty, in a separate case, on two counts of bank fraud, five counts of tax fraud and one charge of failing to disclose foreign bank accounts, giving special counsel Robert Mueller a victory in the first trial arising from his investigation of Russia’s role in the 2016 U.S. election. Jurors were deadlocked on the other 10 counts.
Manafort is shown with his wife Kathleen on March 8 in Alexandria, Va. Manafort later had his bail revoked and was ordered jailed after allegations of witness tampering. (Joshua Roberts/Reuters)
The trial included testimony for the prosecution from Manafort’s longtime aide, Rick Gates, who pleaded guilty to lying to federal authorities and agreed to co-operate with the special counsel probe.
Manafort had the option of rolling all the charges he faced into one trial, but chose not to. Originally under house arrest, he was placed behind bars in the summer after allegations of witness tampering.
Trump sympathetic
Manafort joined the Trump campaign in March 2016 and was elevated to chair in May. He left the campaign in August that year — days after the New York Times reported a Ukraine investigation had uncovered $12.7 million US in undisclosed cash payments involving Manafort from 2007 to 2012. The money, the newspaper reported, came from the pro-Russian party of Viktor Yanukovych, the onetime Ukraine president.
But in his first trial, jurors were given an indication that Manafort was not necessarily shut out from the Trump team when he was let go, as he recommended candidates to Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, in an email during the presidential transition, receiving a prompt and enthusiastic response.
Manafort is shown at the Republican convention in Cleveland behind Donald Trump on July 21, 2016. The president has tried to distance himself from his former campaign chair. (Rick Wilking/Reuters)
At a rally in August, Trump said: “I feel very badly for Paul Manafort. It has nothing to do with me. Nothing to do with Russia collusion.”
Asked by reporters at the White House if he would consider a pardon if Manafort is convicted, Trump said last month: “I don’t talk about that.”
He also called the prosecution of Manafort “a sad day for our country.”
Other guilty pleas from Trump associates
Manafort succeeded Corey Lewandowski in directing Trump’s campaign, and was essentially replaced in that role by Steve Bannon. Manafort was present, along with Kushner and Donald Trump Jr., at a controversial Trump Tower meeting in June 2016 with Russian figures. The meeting has been a subject of inquiry in the congressional intelligence, judiciary and oversight committees.
Manafort’s prominence in D.C. lobbying circles extends back nearly four decades, when he helped found a firm along with individuals including Roger Stone, another former Trump campaign adviser who has testified to congressional committees examining alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election.
The Manafort case came about as Mueller was given the authority as of May 2017 to investigate any links and/or co-ordination between the Russian government and individuals associated with the campaign of Trump, as well as any potentially criminal matters that arose directly from the investigation.
Trump has repeatedly used the word collusion in defending himself, although there is no such federal crime of collusion. The president could be damaged politically should there be findings of conspiracy or obstruction of justice at the conclusion of Mueller’s investigation.
The special counsel probe has ensnared other Trump associates, arguably none bigger than his national security adviser Michael Flynn, seen on Dec. 1, 2017 after a court appearance in Washington. (Joshua Roberts/Reuters)
Manafort would join Gates, former national security adviser Michael Flynn and campaign foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos as individuals in Trump’s orbit who have pleaded guilty in the special counsel investigation.
Mueller’s indictments have also included some two dozen Russians for alleged cyber-intrusions designed to disrupt the 2016 election and roil the U.S. political debate.
Russia has denied the allegations, although at a joint news conference with Trump in July in Helsinki, Russian President Vladimir Putin admitted he wanted the Republican to defeat Democrat Hillary Clinton.
With files from CBC News