Paul Manafort’s former son-in-law Jeffrey Yohai has agreed to a plea deal with the Justice Department, forcing him to cooperate with officials on other criminal probes, two sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
Special counsel Robert Mueller has leveled two indictments against Manafort — the former chairman of President Donald Trump’s election campaign — that include charges of bank fraud and tax evasion. Manafort has pleaded not guilty on all allegations.
Yohai used to work with Manafort as a business partner and was once married to his daughter. Yohai’s guilty plea agreement is sealed, but the fact it exists could put legal and public pressure on Manafort. As of yet, however, the deal could have been struck to guarantee Yohai’s cooperation in a completely separate investigation, according to Reuters.
Mueller was appointed to investigate alleged Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election. Mueller has not been able to turn up any ties between Manafort and the Russian government, however, according to Manafort’s lawyers. (RELATED: Manafort Lawyers Say Special Counsel Unable To Produce Evidence Of Russia Contacts)
Trump has supported Manafort, calling him a “good person” and slammed Mueller’s probe as a “witch hunt.” (RELATED: Trump Came Out Swinging For Paul Manafort And Dropped A Pile Driver On The Special Counsel’s Office [VIDEO])
“On CNN, they have a headline, ‘Judge in Manafort case says Mueller’s aim is to hurt Trump.’ You believe that? This is what we’re up — it is called the witch hunt. So I just said, ‘Give me that article. I want to read it.’ … just happened a few minutes before I walked on stage,” Trump told a crowd in a May 4 speech.
“A federal judge Friday questioned Special counsel Robert Mueller’s authority to bring tax and bank fraud charges, unrelated — unrelated — nobody knows that. Everyone thinks, ‘oh — unrelated to the 2016 election against former Trump campaign manager chairman Paul Manafort,'” Trump continued.
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