Manafort Spox ‘Confident That He Will Be Acquitted’ Of All New Charges

Former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort and his wife Kathleen arrive at the Prettyman Federal Courthouse January 16, 2018 in Washington, DC. Manafort and his former business partner Richard Gates both pleaded not guilty last year to a 12-charge indictment that included money laundering and conspiracy. — WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 16: Former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort (L) and his wife Kathleen arrive at the Prettyman Federal Courthouse January 16, 2018 in Washington, DC. Manafort and his former business part... WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 16: Former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort (L) and his wife Kathleen arrive at the Prettyman Federal Courthouse January 16, 2018 in Washington, DC. Manafort and his former business partner Richard Gates were indicted on charges that included money laundering and conspiracy. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) MORE LESS

February 23, 2018 8:01 a.m.

Start your day with TPM.

A spokesperson for President Trump’s former campaign official Paul Manafort said Friday that Manfort is “confident that he will be acquitted of all charges” after special counsel Robert Mueller on Thursday filed a new indictment against Manafort and his former business partner Rick Gates.

“(Manafort) is innocent of the allegations set out in the newly filed indictments and he is confident that he will be acquitted of all charges,” Manfort’s spokesperson Jason Maloni said in a statement to CNN. “The new allegations against Mr. Manafort, once again, have nothing to do with Russia and 2016 election interference/collusion. Mr. Manafort is confident that he will be acquitted and violations of his constitutional rights will be remedied.”

In October, Manfort and Gates were indicted on charges of conspiracy against the U.S., conspiracy to launder money and making false statements. Mueller filed an additional 32-count indictment against the two on Thursday, with charges ranging from making false statements on tax returns, failure to report foreign bank and financial accounts and bank fraud. The indictment also alleges Manafort and Gates misled lenders and exaggerated their income in order to obtain loans.

The additional charges are the latest in a string of indictments against Trump campaign associates as Mueller investigates Russian interference in the 2016 election. Last week, Mueller announced an indictment against 13 Russian nationals for their work for a Russian troll farm to meddle in the election.

Start your day with TPM.

Nicole Lafond (@Nicole_Lafond) is TPM’s deputy editor, based in New York. She has also worked as the special projects editor and as a senior newswriter for TPM. She has a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University and previously covered education in central Illinois.

Have a tip? Send it Here!

includes:

Russia probe

Just about everyone charged with crimes by Mueller will likely assert in court Mueller's marching orders were improperly expanded to include alleged crimes by their clients Mueller had no business digging into in the first place. Sort of like a cop getting a judge to sign a search warrant looking for drugs, yet during the search child porn is found. Motions to throw out evidence will abound.

Show Comments

Notable Replies

daveminnj says:

February 23, 2018

putinstoogesayswhat.
silas1898 says:

February 23, 2018

“The new allegations against Mr. Manafort, once again, have nothing to do with Russia and 2016 election interference/collusion."

I love the smell of desperation in the morning…
centralasiaexpat says:

February 23, 2018

A spokesman said this? Not his lawyer, however. Way to send a clear message… hahaha.

“The new allegations against Mr. Manafort, once again, have nothing to do with Russia and 2016 election interference/collusion."

misterneutron says:

February 23, 2018

steviedee111:

Sort of like a cop getting a judge to sign a search warrant looking for drugs, yet during the search child porn is found.

More like finding a dead body in a pool of blood in the kitchen - plain sight.