Ex- aide pleads guilty
Admission of guilt could mean Rick Gates is planning to co- operate with special counsel
WASHINGTON — A former top adviser to U. S. President Donald Trump’s election campaign pleaded guilty Friday to federal conspiracy and false- statements charges in the special counsel’s Russia investigation.
The plea by Rick Gates was a strong indication that he is planning to co- operate with special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation as it continues to probe the Trump campaign, Russian election interference and Gates’ longtime business associate, Paul Manafort.
Gates, 45, made the plea at the Federal Courthouse in Washington, D. C. A court filing shows Gates admitted to charges accusing him of conspiring against the U. S. government related to fraud and unregistered foreign lobbying as well as lying to federal authorities in an interview.
Gates’ plea came a day after a federal grand jury in Virginia returned a 32- count indictment against him and Manafort, Trump’s former campaign chairman, accusing them of tax evasion and bank fraud.
The indictment in Virginia was the second round of charges against Gates and Manafort, who has denied any wrongdoing. The two men were initially charged last October with unregistered lobbying and conspiring to launder millions of dollars they earned while working on behalf of a pro- Russian Ukrainian political party.
The plea comes on the heels of the stunning indictment last week that laid out a broad operation of election meddling by Russia, which began in 2014, and employed fake social media accounts and on- theground politicking to promote Trump’s campaign, disparage Hillary Clinton and sow division and discord widely among the U. S. electorate.
The charges to which Gates pleaded guilty don’t involve any conduct connected to the Trump campaign. They largely relate to a conspiracy laid out in his indictments, but they do reveal that Gates is accused of lying to the FBI during an interview earlier this month.
The court papers accuse Gates of lying about a March 19, 2013, meeting involving Manafort, a lobbyist and a member of Congress. Gates said the meeting did not include discussion of Ukraine, when in fact prosecutors say it did.
The charges don’t identify the lobbyist or the lawmaker but filings with the Justice Department show Manafort and lobbyist Vin Weber of Mercury Public Affairs met with Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R- Calif., on that date as part of an effort on behalf of Ukrainian interests.
As Gates was kept on house arrest, he frequently pleaded with U. S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson for leniency to attend sporting events with his four children. His court filings gradually began to show the strain the case was placing on him and his family.
On Thursday night, Gates emailed a brief letter to friends and family, telling them of his decision to plead guilty, Republican lobbyist Jack Burkman said.
“It’s sad,” said Burkman, who had hosted a fundraiser for Gates’ legal defence fund.
Gates had access at the highest levels of the campaign at the same time that Manafort, Donald Trump Jr. and Jared Kushner met with a team of Russians in Trump Tower in June 2016. He was also in the top ranks of the campaign when then- Sen. Jeff Sessions held a pair of undisclosed meetings with Russian ambassador to the U. S. Sergey Kislyak.