Mueller’s team opposes bail for Manafort after he tried writing newspaper op-ed, defying court order to keep quiet
The special counsel investigating Russian meddling in the 2016 US presidential election on Monday accused President Donald Trump’s former campaign manager, Paul Manafort, of working with a Russian colleague to draft a newspaper opinion piece about his political work for Ukraine.
In court filings, a prosecutor working with Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s team said Manafort was working on the article as recently as November 30.
Had it been published, prosecutors say it would have violated a November 8 court order not to discuss the case publicly.
Even if the ghostwritten op-ed were entirely accurate, fair and balanced, it would be a violation of this court’s November 8 order if it had been published
The Russian colleague who was working with Manafort allegedly to shape public opinion about his work for a Ukrainian political party has ties to Russian intelligence agencies, according to the filing.
Manafort ultimately never published the opinion piece, after prosecutors reached out to his attorneys to alert them, they said in the filing.
Due to Manafort’s actions, prosecutors said the judge should reject his request to modify his bail conditions.
Manafort has proposed an US$11.65 million bail package in exchange for lifting him from house arrest and electronic monitoring.