U.S. reveals second thoughts about Flynn’s no-prison deal

NEW YORK — Michael Flynn’s hopes of avoiding a prison term could be in jeopardy after U.S. prosecutors said that his new legal strategy had prompted them to reassess their 2-year-old cooperation agreement.

Flynn, the former Trump national security adviser who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI, had been expected to testify against his former business partner, Bijan Kian. A trial for Kian is scheduled to begin next week in Alexandria, Va., on federal charges that he acted as an unregistered agent for Turkey.

Prosecutors said in court papers unsealed this week that Flynn had been dropped as a witness. Flynn has backed away from his earlier statements to authorities since changing lawyers last month and retaining an attorney harshly critical of special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of Russian election interference. Those changes were widely viewed as a possible attempt to secure a presidential pardon.

Prosecutors said this week that Flynn’s role in the Kian case had changed from cooperator to co-conspirator. In the latest filings, they said Flynn may be called instead as a witness for the defense. They asked the judge to delay Flynn’s sentencing until the Kian case is completed.

Flynn was the first major figure to strike a deal with the special counsel’s office. He was allowed to plead guilty to a single count of lying to the FBI about his conversations with the Russian ambassador, a crime with a possible prison sentence as long as five years, in return for his cooperation with Mueller investigation.

At his sentencing hearing last December, Mueller’s office said Flynn’s decision to cooperate early and offer a wide range of help had been so valuable that he could be spared time behind bars.