Trials of Paul Manafort

[3][4] Manafort and his business assistant Rick Gates were both indicted and arrested in October 2017 for charges of conspiracy against the United States, making false statements, money laundering, and failing to register as foreign agents for Ukraine.

[24] Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who was appointed on May 17, 2017, by the Justice Department to oversee the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections and related matters, took over the existing criminal probe involving Manafort.

He pointed out his experience advising presidential campaigns in the United States and around the world, described himself as an outsider not connected to the Washington establishment, and offered to work without salary.

Manafort took over control of the daily operations of the campaign as well as an expanded $20 million budget, hiring decisions, advertising, and media strategy.

It was reported that members of Trump's family, particularly Jared Kushner, who had originally been a strong backer of Manafort, had become uneasy about his Russian connections and suspected that he had not been forthright about them.

"[36] On July 26, 2017, the day after Manafort's United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence hearing and the morning of his planned hearing before the United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, FBI agents at Mueller's direction conducted a raid on Manafort's home in Alexandria, Virginia, using a search warrant to seize documents and other materials in regard to the Russian meddling in the 2016 election.

[52] U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia Judge Amy Berman Jackson issued an order on December 22, 2017, demanding that Gates explain why his comments in a brief, videotaped address to the fundraiser held in an Arlington Holiday Inn on December 19 did not amount to a violation of the gag order she issued in the case.

On February 15, 2018, CNN reported that Gates was finalizing a plea deal with Mueller's office, indicating he was poised to cooperate in the investigation.

He had already undergone his "Queen for a Day" interview, in which Gates answered any and all questions from Mueller's team, including about his own case and other potential criminal activity he witnessed or participated in.

[59] On February 22, 2018, Manafort and Gates were further charged with additional crimes, involving a tax avoidance scheme and bank fraud, in Virginia.

Manafort allegedly used funds in these offshore accounts to purchase real estate in the United States, in addition to personal goods and services.

On February 23, 2018, Gates pleaded guilty in federal court to lying to investigators and engaging in a conspiracy to defraud the United States.

[63] On February 27, the special counsel moved to dismiss without prejudice 22 tax and bank fraud charges against Gates as part of their plea agreement.

Jackson subsequently set a trial date of September 17, 2018, and reprimanded Manafort and his attorney for violating her gag order by issuing a statement the previous week after former co-defendant Gates pleaded guilty.

[82] Manafort's business assistant Rick Gates, who had earlier pleaded guilty to two felony counts in a plea bargain, was on the stand for three days.

[8] After Gates' testimony ended, an IRS agent testifying as an expert witness said that Manafort had failed to report at least $16 million in income from Ukraine between 2010 and 2014.

The prosecution filed a motion for a corrective ruling, citing the trial transcript where Ellis had earlier granted permission for the expert witness to attend.

[90] In emails introduced into evidence at the beginning of the trial, Calk sent several messages to Manafort listing administration positions he aspired to, including four cabinet posts, numerous ambassadorships, and Secretary of the Army.

[102][103] Trump responded to the decision by tweeting that he felt "very badly" for Manafort and his family: " 'Justice' took a 12 year old tax case, among other things, applied tremendous pressure on him and, unlike Michael Cohen, he refused to 'break' — make up stories in order to get a 'deal.'

[106] However, on January 28, Ellis postponed the sentencing date until allegations Manafort had breached his plea agreement with prosecutors in the D.C. court were resolved.

[111] In DC, Manafort was scheduled to be tried on charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States, failing to register as a foreign agent, money laundering, witness tampering and making false statements.

During this time, the parties negotiated a plea deal,[115] and on September 14, during what was technically his second trial, Manafort pleaded guilty to two charges: conspiracy to defraud the United States and witness tampering.

[14] As part of the plea bargain, Manafort agreed to the forfeiture of three bank accounts, a life insurance policy, and five New York properties estimated to be worth $22 million.

[14] Mueller's office stated in a court filing on November 26, 2018, that Manafort had repeatedly lied about a variety of matters, breaching the terms of his plea agreement.

[118] On December 7, 2018, the special counsel's office filed a document with the court listing five areas in which they say Manafort lied to them, which they said negated the plea agreement.

Through an error in redacting, the document accidentally revealed that while he was campaign chairman, Manafort met with Konstantin Kilimnik, who is believed to be linked to Russian intelligence.

[127] After the earlier sentencing for the Virginia case, Downing had made a more carefully worded courthouse-steps comment, "There is absolutely no evidence that Paul Manafort was involved in any collusion with any government official from Russia."

"[128] During an interview with Fox & Friends the same day, Trump did not deny the possibility, saying only that he had "great respect" for the legal challenges that Manafort was facing.

[130] Congressman Jerrold Nadler, the incoming chair of the House Judiciary Committee, opined that "dangling a pardon in front of Manafort" could lead to charges of obstruction of justice.

Trump did not pardon Manafort’s deputy, Rick Gates, who was sentenced in the previous year to 45 days in prison but extensively cooperated with prosecutors.