Paul Manafort.
Summary: George Papadopoulos, Paul Manafort, and Rick Gates were indicted for allegedly colluding with the Russians during the 2016 presidential campaign.
On Monday, Trump campaign foreign policy advisor George Papadopoulos pled guilty to making false statements to the FBI as part of Special Counsel Robert “Bob” Mueller’s investigation into whether or not Russia illegally influenced the 2016 presidential campaign. Trump’s other former campaign advisor Paul Manafort was also indicted on charges including conspiracy against the United States, money laundering and working as unregistered foreign agents.
Papadopoulos pled guilty to making false statements and omissions during the FBI investigation into the Trump campaign’s relationship with Russia. Papadopoulos specifically lied about his contacts with a professor in London with Russian-relations, according to ABC News.
In his plea documentation, Papadopoulos said that he had been cooperating with authorities by meeting several times to answer questions.
Manafort’s longtime business associate Rick Gates was also indicted, and Gates and Manafort pled not guilty to all charges. The two surrendered on Monday morning in Washington, DC after a grand jury approved the charges Mueller had submitted on Friday. According to ABC News, Gates and Manafort received 12 counts: conspiracy against the U.S., conspiracy to launder money, serving as an unregistered agent of a foreign principal, false and misleading Foreign Agents Registration Act statements, false statements and seven counts of failure to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts.
NBC News reports that the government was interested in Manafort’s lavish lifestyle, and authorities said that he had hidden almost $75 million he was paid by foreign banks.
In July, the government raided Manafort’s home, looking for evidence in the Russia investigation. Manafort, 68, was one of the key people of Mueller’s probe because of his work in 2014 with the Ukranian government, which has strong ties to the Kremlin.
Manafort worked for Trump’s campaign as an advisor in March 2016. He was fired in August 2016 because of his questionable business ties.
Manafort’s lawyer told ABC News that there was no evidence of collusion between his client and Russia and that the indictment was “ridiculous.”
Gates joined Manafort’s international consulting firm, Davis Manafort Partners, in 2006. Gates was best known for leading the Trump’s campaign’s operations at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland during the 2016 election; and after Trump’s win, he joined a non-profit that supports the president’s positions.
Gates’ legal team stated he “welcomes the opportunity to confront these charges in court.”
On Monday, both men were released on multimillion-dollar bonds to their respective homes. They were required to turn over their passports and are not allowed to leave their houses except for activities such as meeting with their lawyers.
Trump has already addressed the indictments on Twitter. On Monday he wrote, “Sorry, but this is years ago, before Paul Manafort was part of the Trump campaign. But why aren’t Crooked Hillary & the Dems the focus?????” He also added that there was no collusion.
White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said that the arrests had nothing to do with Trump.