Update :
Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort reaches plea deal
The plea deal calls for a cap on Manafort’s prison time, forces him to forfeit property and dismisses deadlocked charges from an earlier trial.
Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort has tentatively agreed to a plea deal with special counsel Robert Mueller that will head off his upcoming trial, sources familiar with the negotiations tell ABC News.
The deal is expected to be announced in court Friday, but it remains unclear whether Manafort has agreed to cooperate with prosecutors or is simply conceding to a guilty plea, which would allow him to avoid the stress and expense of trial, according to three sources with knowledge of the discussions.
Manafort and his most senior defense attorneys spent more than four hours Thursday in discussions with a team of special prosecutors who are involved in the ongoing investigation into whether there was collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia.
ABC News spotted the team arriving in a dark SUV Thursday morning, pulling into a secret entrance out of public view at the building where Special Counsel Robert Mueller is based.
Word of the agreement comes as Manafort’s second trial was slated to begin later this month in federal court in Washington, D.C.
Just under a year ago, the 69-year-old veteran GOP operative was charged in Washington, D.C., with several counts of fraud and failing to register as a foreign agent by the special counsel. A second case was opened in Virginia earlier this year on related charges that ended with a jury finding Manafort guilty on eight counts out of an 18-count indictment, facing a maximum of 80 years behind the bars, though under sentencing guidelines the term is likely to be closer to seven years. He has not been sentenced in that case.
Manafort has been held in jail for the last several months after prosecutors accused him of witness tampering.
He joined the president’s campaign in March 2016 and became campaign chairman in May, and left the campaign in August days after the New York Times and the Associated Press ran reports that he had been tied to alleged undisclosed foreign lobbying practices in Ukraine.
A spokesperson for Manafort and a representative for the special counsel’s office both declined to comment.
“That individual strongly requested confidentiality, declined to come forward or press the matter further, and I have honored that decision. I have, however, referred the matter to federal investigative authorities.” The corrupt Washington inner workings have forgotten that a person in our country is innocent until PROVEN guilty by a jury of their piers. The Democrats and Robert Mueller seem to have forgotten that, and make wild statements first, then go about trying to prove what they outlandishly said is true. With the likes of Maxine Waters (D) Cal, Nancy Pelosi (D) Cal, Boxer (D) Cal, Diane Feinstein (D) Cal, Elizabeth Warren (D) Mas, Hillary Clinton (D), Bill Clinton (D),Barrack Obama (D), Michele Obama (D) and of course George Soros (D) who finances all this for lack of other words, political crap in their quest to turn this beautiful country into a third world socialist, two class society for their benefit. There will be the politically powerful and ultra rich and the worker bees who slave their lives away on the crumbs that are allowed to fall at the will and pleasure of those in charge. You choose, you select they way you want our nation to go. Lets give the current POTUS some room to work and get his agenda going. We allowed Obama to do so, why have we stopped now? The goal of every Democrat is to put obstacles and cause as many problems as they can for this administration as they can. At no time in the history of this country has this ever happened before, and I for one see many steps over the line by some Democrats as violations of established laws to the point it is almost Treasonous.
If Manafort accepts the plea deal, is he going to have to falsely implicate President Trump in some way as being complicit in some kind of Russian collusion?
Where is my comment posted??????????
If you put enough pressure on someone with unlimited money, you break their spirit and they’ll do anything you ask them to do. Even if it’s a lie.
Mueller has to take Manafort out of solitary confinement where he was imprisoned without a jury trial by a judge who “suspected” Manafort of trying to contact other people! The entire episode is embarrassing for Mueller and the activist judge!
For Democrats that were against “waterboarding” this team sure does a lot of it! They are destroying families and our country with all their corrupt dealings while they didn’t even bat an eye against the past administration and how they had corrupted our country with lies and brainwashing youth and college kids and now instead of education they are taught to riot and destroy everything our country stands for! Enough of Mueller. Our country voted for a change because we want our country back!
If nothing has been CONFIRMED why are you reporting on this???? FAKE NEWS
There was no collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign but you can bet your sweet A** that Muleller and the Demo-rats will do everything, including lying, stealing, bribing and threatening Manaford, or anyone else standing in the way of “Making America Great Again”.
Mueller you are trying to make an example of Manafort why dont you go after someone who has really done corrupt things breaking the law that Comey excused that was a setup deal and you know it and the person and her corrupt money is walking free why you are pestering anyone connected to our President, when are you Mueller going to drop this stupid game you are playing and leave PRESIDENT TRUMP ALONE,HE IS THE BEST PRESIDENT AMERICA HAS EVER HAD AND YOUR CRONIES ARE JEALOUS!!!!
Why are we still wasting America’s money on Mueller with all his false issues? Congress need to stop this now. It does still look like Mueller is just trying to make a big name for himself. He has not proven anything to date.
Trump should be stopped this long ago it’s a farce and has been from the start it’s just a another example of Trump derangement syndrome
So basically the Muleturd wants Manafort to make up a story or face life in prison. About par for the course for pond scum like Mueller.