Robert Mueller’s grand jury probing Donald Trump’s ties with Russia has been extended – does that mean more indictments are coming?
- Mueller’s probe has been a lightning rod for criticism by the White House and its Republican supporters, with the president regularly describing it as a ‘witch hunt’ despite a series of guilty pleas by former aides
Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s grand jury has more time to complete its work – and that may mean more indictments are coming.
Beryl Howell, chief judge of the Washington federal court where the panel convenes to hear evidence in secret, has extended the grand jury’s term, court spokeswoman Lisa Klem said on Friday. The panel began hearing evidence in July 2017, two months after Mueller was appointed to investigate Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and potential ties to President Donald Trump’s campaign.
That extension “indicates that at least in Robert Mueller’s mind, there’s at least potential additional criminal charges to be brought,” said Seth Waxman, a former federal prosecutor in the capital who has been following developments in the probe.
Among the people the panel has indicted: former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort; the president’s first national security adviser, Michael Flynn; three Russian businesses and 13 individuals who allegedly conspired to roil the US prior to the election using social media; and a dozen Russian intelligence agents accused of hacking Democrats’ computers.
While Klem declined to say how much longer the jurors may sit, federal rules of criminal procedure allow for a six-month extension upon a court finding that it’s in the public interest.