Judge orders Manafort to go to jail ahead of trials
Ex-Trump campaign chief accused of witness tampering while on bail
WASHINGTON – A federal judge on Friday ordered former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort to jail to await separate trials on money laundering and fraud charges after allegations that he sought to obstruct the Russia inquiry while he was on house arrest.
Immediately after U.S. District Judge Amy Jackson revoked Manafort’s bail, he was led from a packed courtroom by U.S. marshals. If convicted, Manafort faces the prospect of spending the rest of his life in prison.
In a lengthy preamble, the judge expressed frustration with Manafort’s conduct, saying that there appeared to be no terms of release that she believed the defendant would follow.
“This is not middle school,” Jackson said. “I can’t take his cellphone . ... I have thought long and hard about this. I don’t think I can draft a clear enough order” setting out conditions for Manafort’s continuing release.
Manafort, who just two summers ago was celebrating then-candidate Donald Trump’s nomination at the Republican National Convention, was charged last week along with Russian business associate Konstantin Kilimnik with scheming to tamper with two witnesses in the existing cases against him.
Prosecutors have asserted that the alleged obstruction effort, in which Manafort and Kilimnik sought to coach the testimony of the two unidentified witnesses, justified revoking Manafort’s bail, sending him to jail to await a July trial in Alexandria, Virginia, on bank fraud charges and a separate September trial in Washington, D.C., where he faces accusations of a vast money laundering and fraud conspiracy.
Investigators have claimed that the “repeated” contacts occurred while Manafort was under house arrest in Virginia, as a condition of his release.
The witnesses worked with Manafort in organizing a group of former European officials who lobbied within the United States without registering as required by law.
The witnesses told investigators that they “understood” Manafort was reaching out to influence the testimony, according to court papers.
Earlier Friday, federal prosecutors representing Russia special counsel Robert Mueller and Manafort’s attorneys clashed in court, with prosecutors arguing that the former Trump aide deserved to be jailed for “committing a crime while on bail.”
“The danger is that Mr. Manafort will continue to commit crimes,” prosecutor Greg Andres told the judge.
Manafort attorney Richard Westling said his client had “no way of knowing” that his contacts involved potential trial witnesses, and he asked that Manafort be provided a list of witnesses so that he would know who to avoid.