The special counsel in the Russia investigation is accusing US President Donald Trump’s former election campaign chairman Paul Manafort of breaching his plea agreement by repeatedly lying to federal investigators, an extraordinary allegation that could expose him to a lengthier prison sentence — and potentially more criminal charges.
The torpedoing of Manafort’s plea deal, disclosed on Monday in a court filing, also results in special counsel Robert Mueller’s team losing a cooperating witness from the top of Trump’s presidential campaign, who was present for several key episodes under investigation.
That includes a Trump Tower meeting involving Donald Trump Jr and a Russian lawyer he was told had derogatory information on then-Democrat presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Photo: Reuters
The move signals a return to the acrimonious relationship Manafort has had with the special counsel’s office since his indictment last year.
Before his plea agreement, Manafort aggressively challenged the special counsel’s legitimacy in court, went through a bitter trial and landed himself in jail after prosecutors discovered he had attempted to tamper with witnesses in his case.
In the latest filing, Mueller’s team said Manafort “committed federal crimes” by lying about “a variety of subject matters” even after he agreed to truthfully cooperate with the investigation.
Prosecutors said they would detail the “nature of the defendant’s crimes and lies” in writing at a later date to the judge.
Through his attorneys, Manafort denied lying, saying he “believes he provided truthful information” during sessions with investigators.
He also disagreed that he breached his plea agreement.
Still, both sides now agree they cannot resolve the conflict and US District Judge Amy Berman Jackson should set a date to sentence him.
Manafort, who remains jailed, had been meeting with the special counsel’s office since he pleaded guilty in September to conspiracy against the US and conspiracy to obstruct justice.
He cut that deal to head off a second trial after being convicted last summer of eight felony counts related to millions of US dollars he hid from the US Internal Revenue Service in offshore accounts.
Both cases stemmed from his Ukrainian political work and undisclosed lobbying work he admitted to carrying out in the US in contravention of federal law.
As part of his plea agreement, Manafort pledged to “cooperate fully, truthfully, completely and forthrightly” with the government “in any and all matters” prosecutors deemed necessary.
That included his work on the Trump campaign, as well as his Ukrainian political work, which remains under investigation by the US attorney for the Southern District of New York.
Prosecutors there are looking into the conduct of longtime Democratic lobbyist Tony Podesta, former Obama White House counsel Greg Craig and former Republican representative and lobbyist Vin Weber to determine whether they contravened federal law by failing to register as foreign agents with the US Department of Justice.
None of the men has been charged with any crimes.
As part of his plea deal, Manafort also forfeited many of his rights as well as his ability to withdraw the plea if he broke any of the terms. In return, prosecutors agreed to not bring additional charges against him and to ask a judge for a reduction of his sentence if he provided “substantial assistance.”
However, with prosecutors saying he breached the agreement, Manafort now faces serious repercussions such as the possibility of prosecution on additional charges including the 10 felony counts prosecutors dropped when he made the deal.
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