Paul Manafort sent to prison
A US court on Friday sent former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort to jail pending trial on charges of money laundering and bank and tax fraud brought against him by Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team probing Russian meddling in 2016 presidential elections.
Manafort, who had been out on bail but under house arrest, was led away from the court in Washington at the end of the hearing. Marshals returned briefly to hand over his wallet, belt and tie to his wife Kathleen Manafort.
He had led President Donald Trump’s campaign for a few months till he was fired for lobbying work for the Ukrainian government. Trump has tried to distance himself from Manafort saying his legal troubles referred to a period before his work for the campaign.
Prosecutors for Mueller had approached the court earlier this month accusing him of witness tampering, working with a longtime associate who is said to have had links to Russian intelligence.
Noting that the court cannot turn a blind eye to accusations of witness tampering, US district judge Amy Berman Jackson, said, “You have abused the trust placed in you six months ago.”
“This isn’t middle school,” she is reported to have told Manafort. “I can’t take your phone.”
Mueller’s prosecutor had alleged that Manafort and his associate had made contacts and attemptedtoinfluencewitnesses.