Day: July 15, 2018

Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s inquiry into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election is ongoing – and secret.
So far, four former Trump campaign associates – Michael Flynn, Paul Manafort, Richard Gates and George Papadopoulos – have been charged, though none of the charges are directly related to any misconduct by the president’s campaign.
Alex van der Zwaan, an attorney, pleaded guilty to lying to FBI investigators during the investigation, and was sentenced to 30 days in prison in April 2018. He was the first to be sentenced in the probe.
The special counsel filed new tax evasion and bank fraud charges against Manafort and Gates in late February, potentially increasing the amount of prison time the pair could face if convicted at trial. The charges are similar to those filed in October.
Here’s a closer look at those who have faced charges throughout Mueller’s probe.

Michael Flynn

Michael Flynn, who served as Trump’s national security adviser for less than a month before resigning, was charged and pleaded guilty in December 2017 to making false statements to the FBI.
Flynn reportedly lied about his talks with Russia’s ambassador to Washington. In late 2016, while former President Barack Obama was still in office, the two allegedly spoke about the U.S. sanctions imposed on Russia.
This raised concerns that Flynn, a retired Army lieutenant general, misled Trump officials about his conversations with Russian officials.

Paul Manafort

The special counsel filed a 32-count indictment on Feb. 22 against former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and aide Rick Gates, accusing the pair of tax evasion and bank fraud.
The new indictment accused Manafort and Gates of doctoring documents to inflate the income of their businesses and then using those fraudulent documents to obtain loans. It also accused Manafort of evading taxes from 2010 through 2014 and, in some of the years, concealing his foreign bank accounts.
And on Feb. 23, a newly unsealed indictment accused Manafort of secretly paying former European politicians to lobby on behalf of Ukraine.
Manafort turned himself in to federal authorities in the fall. The 69-year-old served as Trump’s campaign manager for a few months in 2016. Gates, Manafort’s business associate, also turned himself in at the time.
Manafort was initially charged in a 12-count indictment in connection with foreign lobbying work, and he pleaded not guilty. The charges included: conspiracy against the U.S., conspiracy to launder money, false statements, unregistered agent of a foreign principal, and multiple counts of failure to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts, according to a special counsel’s office spokesman.
In June 2018, Mueller’s team brought additional charges of obstruction of justice against Manafort and Konstantin Kilimnik, an associate.
Manafort sued to have the case against him dismissed and argued that Mueller had overstepped his bounds by charging him for conduct he says is unrelated to Russian interference in the 2016 election.
On June 15, however, Manafort was jailed after a federal judge revoked his $10 million bail based on new witness tampering charges brought by Mueller.