US: Manafort ‘lied, breached plea deal’

By Umar Farooq

WASHINGTON (AA) - Paul Manafort, the former campaign chairman for U.S. President Donald Trump, lied to investigators multiple times, breaching a plea deal he signed two months ago, federal prosecutors said late Monday.

The Special Counsel's Office, led by Robert Mueller, filed a report in U.S. District Court in Washington saying Manafort had broken the plea agreement and called for his sentencing hearing to not be delayed.

"After signing the plea agreement, Manafort committed federal crimes by lying to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Special Counsel’s Office on a variety of subject matters, which constitute breaches of the agreement," the joint status report said.

Manafort in September pleaded guilty to two criminal counts in a separate case in the nation’s capital, marking a legal victory for the special counsel team investigating Russian attempts to interfere in the 2016 presidential election and possible Trump campaign efforts to assist in the effort.

Manafort's cooperation included participating in interviews, handing over documents and possible testimony. He was also ordered to forfeit multiple bank accounts and properties.

The Special Counsel's Office said it would file a detailed sentencing submission to explain exactly what Manafort's "crimes and lies" are.

Manafort, currently in prison in Virginia, faced two prosecutions by Mueller’s office: one in Virginia charging him with tax fraud, bank fraud and failure to report overseas bank accounts, and another in Washington charging him with acting as an unregistered foreign agent for Ukraine, money laundering and obstruction of justice.

He is scheduled to be sentenced in the Virginia case on Feb. 8.