Manafort indicted; ex-Trump aide from Chicago pleads guilty in probe

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Trump Campaign Chairman Paul Manafort talks to reporters on the floor of the Republican National Convention at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland last year. | Associated Press file photo

WASHINGTON — Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election revealed its first targets Monday, with a Chicago man who was former campaign adviser to President Donald Trump admitting he lied to the FBI about his contacts with Russians. Separately, Trump’s former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, and a former Manafort business associate were indicted on felony charges of conspiracy against the United States and other counts.

The guilty plea by the former adviser, George Papadopoulos, 30, marked the first criminal count that cites interactions between Trump campaign associates and Russian intermediaries during the campaign. Papadopoulous grew up in Lincolnwood, went to Niles West High School, graduated from DePaul University and most recently was living in the Lincoln Square neighborhood with his mother and brother.

The charges ushered Mueller’s sprawling investigation into a new phase with felony charges and possible prison sentences for key members of the Trump campaign.

Trump quickly tweeted that the alleged misdeeds by his former campaign chairman were “years ago,” and he insisted there was “NO COLLUSION” between his campaign and Russia.

He added, as he has a number of times recently, “Why aren’t Crooked Hillary & the Dems the focus?????”

George Papadopoulos from Niles West Year Book 2005

George Papadopoulos from Niles West Year Book 2005

Papadopoulos’ plea happened Oct. 5 and was unsealed Monday. In court papers, he admitted lying about the nature of his interactions with “foreign nationals” who he thought had close connections to senior Russian government officials

Papadopoulos pleaded guilty to lying to federal agents working for special counsel Mueller about his dealings with several Russians who were offering “dirt” on Trump’s Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton.

Later Monday, the White House described Papadopoulos’ role in the campaign as “extremely limited” and as a volunteer.

The separate charges against Manafort and Rick Gates contend the men acted as unregistered foreign agents for Ukrainian interests. The indictments also include several other financial counts involving tens of millions of dollars routed through offshore accounts. Both men pleaded not guilty in federal court Monday afternoon.

Manafort’s indictment doesn’t reference the Trump campaign or make any allegations about coordination between the Kremlin and the president’s aides to influence the outcome of the election in Trump’s favor. The indictment does allege a criminal conspiracy was continuing through February of this year, after Trump had taken office.

The indictment filed in federal court in Washington accused both men of funneling payments through foreign companies and bank accounts as part of their political work in Ukraine. Manafort and Gates surrendered to federal authorities Monday, and were expected in court later in the day to face charges brought by Mueller’s team.

The indictment lays out 12 counts including conspiracy against the United States, conspiracy to launder money, acting as an unregistered foreign agent, making false statements and several charges related to failing to report foreign bank and financial accounts. The indictment alleges the men moved money through hidden bank accounts in Cyprus, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and the Seychelles.

In total, more than $75 million flowed through the offshore accounts, according to the indictment. Manafort is accused of laundering more than $18 million.

Here on Monday, Mayor Rahm Emanuel was measured in his response to the first waive of indictments.

But Emanuel, who served as former President Barack Obama’s first White House chief of staff, said he views as most significant the charges against the person with the closest ties to the Chicago area: Papadopoulos.

“They’re investigating right now Russian influence on the election. What’s significant about the indictment of the individual [who] came from the Chicago area is about whether there were any Americans cooperating with the Russian attempt to undermine our democracy and the integrity of our election,” said Emanuel, who once was a staffer for former President Bill Clinton and remains a close friend of the Clintons

“And when I look at everything that was done today by Mr. Mueller and his independent inquiry, I found the thing that’s most troubling—doesn’t mean that it’s conclusive. I want to be cautionary—is the first individual.”

The mayor noted that Manafort and Gates’ actions “pre-date the Trump administration and the Trump election.” Papadopoulos’ indictment, by contrast, is “about what happened in the campaign and most importantly on target about Russian influence and maybe whether an individual in the United States was cooperative in that effort,” the mayor said.

“Nothing has happened yet except for an indictment. But that to me is the most troubling sign about what has disturbed all of us: The Russian government’s attempt to undermine the integrity of our democracy.

“What would be more troubling is if any individual, an American citizen, was an accomplice in that effort of aiding and abetting a foreign government–not exactly a friend of the United States of America– in undermining our democracy. That is a troubling sign–not for Donald Trump alone, but for the country. We’ll wait to see where that goes.”

A lawyer for Manafort said there is “no evidence” that his client or the Trump campaign colluded with the Russian government.

Kevin Downing made the statement outside a federal courthouse in Washington where Manafort had just pleaded not guilty to felony charges including conspiracy against the United States and several financial charges. Downing also said the charges related to his client’s offshore money transfers are “ridiculous.”

An indictment against Manafort and his longtime business associated, Gates, was unsealed early Monday. Manafort was released on $10 million bond and placed on house arrest. Gates’ bond was $5 million.

Manafort, 68, was fired as Trump’s campaign chairman in August 2016 after word surfaced that he had orchestrated a covert lobbying operation on behalf of pro-Russian interests in Ukraine. The indictments against Manafort and Gates were largely based on activities disclosed in August 2016 by The Associated Press, which reported that the pair had directly orchestrated a covert Washington lobbying operation on behalf of Ukraine’s ruling political party.

Citing internal emails, the AP noted that Gates personally directed the work of two prominent Washington lobbying firms. The indictment quotes from some of the same emails the AP had obtained.

The indictment accuses Manafort and Gates of orchestrating a nearly decade-long conspiracy to covertly work for Ukrainian interests and launder millions of dollars through offshore accounts. Specifically, the indictment accuses Manafort of using “his hidden overseas wealth to enjoy a lavish lifestyle in the United States, without paying taxes on that income.” That included using offshore accounts to purchase multimillion-dollar properties in the U.S., some of which the government is seeking to seize.

Mueller was appointed as special counsel in May to lead the Justice Department’s investigation into whether the Kremlin worked with associates of the Trump campaign to tip the presidential election.

The appointment came one week after the firing of James Comey, who as FBI director led the investigation, and also followed the recusal months earlier of Attorney General Jeff Sessions from the probe.

Mueller’s investigators have focused on Manafort for months. In July, they raided one of his homes in Virginia, searching for tax and international banking records.

Manafort joined Trump’s campaign in March 2016 and oversaw the convention delegate strategy. Trump pushed him out in August amid a steady stream of negative headlines about Manafort’s foreign consulting work.

Trump’s middle son, Eric Trump, said in an interview at the time that his father was concerned that questions about Manafort’s past were taking attention away from the billionaire’s presidential bid.

Manafort has been a subject of a longstanding FBI investigation into his dealings in Ukraine and work for the country’s former president, Viktor Yanukovych. That investigation was incorporated into Mueller’s broader probe.

Previously, he denied any wrongdoing related to his Ukrainian work, saying through a spokesman that it “was totally open and appropriate.”

Manafort also recently registered with the Justice Department as a foreign agent for parts of Ukrainian work that occurred in Washington. The filing under the Foreign Agents Registration Act came retroactively, a tacit acknowledgment that he operated in Washington in violation of the federal transparency law.

Mueller’s investigation has also reached into the White House, as he examines the circumstances of Comey’s firing. Investigators have requested extensive documents from the White House about key actions since Trump took office and have interviewed multiple current and former officials.

Mueller’s grand jury has also heard testimony about a June 2016 meeting at Trump Tower attended by a Russian lawyer as well as Manafort, Donald Trump Jr., and the president’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner.

In Gates, Mueller brings in not just Manafort’s chief deputy, but a key player from Trump’s campaign who survived past Manafort’s ouster last summer. As of two weeks ago, Gates was still working for Tom Barrack, a Trump confidant, helping with the closeout of the inauguration committee’s campaign account.

Contributing: Dan Mihalopoulos, Lynn Sweet, Fran Spielman

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