Manafort accused of witness tampering
June 5, 2018
US Special Counsel Robert Mueller has accused Trump's embattled former campaign chair, Paul Manafort, of trying to tamper with witnesses while under house arrest.
Mueller, who is leading an investigation into possible collusion between President Trump's 2016 campaign and Russia, made the allegations in a court filing on Monday.
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In it, his team accuses Manafort and an unnamed associate of trying to call, text and send encrypted messages in February to two potential witnesses at "The Hapsburg Group," a lobbying association of former European officials that promoted the former Ukrainian government's interests.
Manafort's communication attempts were part of an effort to try and influence the testimonies of the witnesses, who are not named in the filing, and occurred while he was under house arrest, according to the filing.
Read more: European politicians got millions to lobby for pro-Russian government in Ukraine
In response, Mueller asked the judge overseeing the case to convene a hearing on whether to revoke the decision that allowed Manafort to be released to home confinement until the start of his trial.
Ukrainian connection
Since October, Manafort has faced charges of money laundering, fraud and failing to register himself as a representative of a foreign government in connection with his work for Ukraine's former pro-Russian president, Viktor Yanukovych. He has pleaded not guilty.
Although a part of the Mueller probe, the charges are not directly linked to the Trump campaign.
US intelligence agencies have accused the Russian government of interfering in the 2016 presidential election to try sway the vote in favor of Trump. The president has described the accusations of Russian meddling a "hoax."
On Monday, Trump claimed to have an "absolute right" to pardon himself should the special counsel find he interfered in the investigation, an assertation which has been questioned by legal experts.
Read more: Donald Trump's 'absolute right to pardon myself' does not exist
amp/se (Reuters, AP, dpa)