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All of the people facing charges from Mueller’s investigation into Russian meddling

Special Counsel Robert Mueller leaves the U.S. Capitol on June 21, 2017. (AP/Andrew Harnik) Special Counsel Robert Mueller leaves the U.S. Capitol on June 21, 2017. (AP/Andrew Harnik)

Special Counsel Robert Mueller leaves the U.S. Capitol on June 21, 2017. (AP/Andrew Harnik)

Amy Sherman
By Amy Sherman March 25, 2019

Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election ended without finding evidence that President Donald Trump or the Trump campaign knowingly participated in the scheme.

Mueller's 22-month investigation, however, netted indictments against 34 people and three entities on nearly 200 separate criminal charges. Five associates of Trump have been convicted, and another, Roger Stone, is awaiting trial.

Here’s a look at all of the charges stemming from Mueller’s investigation.

Trump’s orbit

Paul Manafort: Prosecutors accused Manafort, former Trump campaign chairman, of laundering over $30 million in overseas income, using a network of companies to mask millions he earned as a political consultant and lobbyist for Ukrainian politicians. The charges were not connected to Manafort’s work for Trump. Manafort pleaded guilty and a jury convicted him on eight counts of tax and bank fraud. In March 2019, a federal judge sentenced Manafort to four years in prison and then a separate federal judge sentenced Manafort to 3 1/2 years related to secret foreign lobbying and witness tampering.

Manafort also is facing a 16-count indictment in New York. The indictment alleges Manafort lied on mortgage loan applications. That indictment, too, is unrelated to Manafort’s specific dealings with Trump and the Trump campaign.

Rick Gates: A top deputy to Manafort, Gates pleaded guilty in February 2018 to lying to investigators and financial fraud related to hiding money he earned lobbying for politicians in the Ukraine along with Manafort. Gates agreed to cooperate with Mueller’s office. In January, Mueller asked a federal judge to delay his sentencing. Like Manafort, Gates’ guilty plea does not have direct ties to Trump or the Trump campaign.

Retired Lt. Gen Michael Flynn: Flynn was a campaign adviser to Trump and then briefly his national security adviser. In November 2017 Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his discussions with the Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak during the presidential transition. Flynn and Kislyak had discussed U.S. sanctions against Russia for election meddling.

On the same day Flynn was sworn in, news reports said he was under investigation by agencies looking into Russian officials’ contact with close Trump associates. Flynn denied to the FBI that he discussed sanctions with Kislyak. Sally Yates, then-acting attorney general, told White House counsel Don McGahn that intercepts contradicted Flynn’s account of his Dec. 29, 2016, conversation with Kislyak.

Flynn resigned after 24 days in his role. He later entered a plea agreement with Mueller. A federal judge in December 2018 delayed Flynn’s sentencing.

George Papadopoulos: A campaign adviser on foreign policy, Papadopoulos pleaded guilty in October 2017 to lying to the FBI about his efforts to put the Trump campaign in contact with Moscow. In March 2016, Papadopoulos met in London with a professor who introduced him to a Russian woman, who Papadopoulos believed to be a relative of Putin with links to senior Russian officials. Papadopoulos told Trump, Jeff Sessions and other campaign officials that he could use his Russian connections to arrange a meeting between Trump and Putin.

In September 2018, Papadopoulos was sentenced to 14 days in jail and a year of supervised release after pleading guilty to lying to the FBI.

According to Republican members of the House Intelligence Committee, it was information from Papadopoulos that triggered the FBI’s original investigation into the Trump campaign and the Russian government. That investigation landed in Mueller’s hands in May 2017, when Trump fired FBI director James Comey.

Michael Cohen: A longtime Trump lawyer and adviser, Cohen pleaded guilty in August 2018 in federal court to a series of criminal charges, including a campaign finance law violation that implicated the president but was unrelated to the Russia interference investigation. Cohen said that Trump directed him to pay hush money to two women to stay silent about their alleged affairs with Trump. Cohen also was convicted of charges surrounding bank and tax fraud. The case was handled by prosecutors for the Southern District of New York.

In November 2018, Cohen additionally pleaded guilty to lying to Congress about the Russian-based development proposal Trump Tower Moscow. Cohen admitted he lied when he told lawmakers he had only briefed Trump on the project three times, and that negotiations broke down in January 2016. In fact, talks continued as late as June 2016, after Trump became the Republican Party’s presumptive nominee. Cohen also concealed his communications with Kremlin officials, as well as the fact he asked Trump to travel to Moscow to further the deal. He said his lies were intended to harmonize with the Trump campaign’s "political messaging."

In December, Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison for financial crimes as well as for lying to Congress. He was also ordered to pay $2 million in penalties.

Although Cohen was prosecuted by the Southern District of New York, Mueller referred certain aspects of the Cohen case to the New York prosecutors in February 2018.

Roger Stone: In January 2019, the FBI arrested Stone, Trump's longtime friend and associate, at his Fort Lauderdale home. Stone was charged with seven felonies, including lying to Congress under oath, witness tampering and obstruction. The indictment lays out a pattern of behavior that gives the strong impression Stone tried to conceal his contacts with WikiLeaks, which possessed stolen documents from the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton’s campaign chairman. Stone pleaded not guilty and has vowed to fight the charges.

Russian or related individuals and entities charged

In February 2018, the special counsel charged 13 Russians and three Russian entities with conspiring to defraud the United States and interfere with the 2016 presidential election. Mueller targeted the Internet Research Agency, a Kremlin-linked company that engages in influence operations and aimed to spread distrust toward candidates and the American political system. By mid 2016, the Internet Research Agency had established a strategy of supporting Trump’s candidacy and disparaging Clinton.

In July 2018, the special counsel indicted an additional 12 Russian intelligence officers for their role in the hacking of the Democratic National Committee, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the Clinton campaign, and leaking of emails and documents.

The special counsel also charged Richard Pinedo, a California resident, with identity fraud. Pinedo sold bank account numbers over the internet to the Russians. His lawyer said he had no connection to Trump and was unaware that customers were involved in the Russia influence operation. Pinedo pleaded guilty and was sentenced to six months in prison in October 2018.

Maria Butina, a Russian living in the United States, pleaded guilty to conspiring to act as an illegal foreign agent in December 2018. Butina has been accused of trying to infiltrate Republican power circles by reaching out through conservative groups such as the National Rifle Association. The indictment doesn’t mention Trump, although the New York Times reported that she tried to help broker a secret meeting with Trump and Putin during the 2016 campaign. Butina was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in D.C. and not Mueller; however, she is cooperating with the Mueller investigation and in February federal prosecutors sought to delay her sentencing.

Other charges

Dutch attorney Alex Van Der Zwaan was indicted for lying to the FBI about interactions with Gates and another associate of Manafort in February 2018. He pleaded guilty and served a 30-day sentence before being deported to the Netherlands.

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Our Sources

PolitiFact, The Russia investigation and Donald Trump: a timeline from on-the-record sources (updated), July 16, 2018

PolitiFact, What you need to know about Manafort indictment, Papadopoulos guilty plea, Oct. 30, 2017

PolitiFact, Timeline of Michael Flynn's turn, from Trump aide to Mueller witness, Dec. 5, 2018

PolitiFact, Comparing Manafort's sentence to life sentence for man who sold pot, March 11, 2019

New York Times, Rick Gates, Trump Campaign Aide, Pleads Guilty in Mueller Inquiry and Will Cooperate, Feb. 23, 2018

New York Times, Russians Bought Bank Accounts From California Man, Mueller Says, Feb. 16, 2018

CNN, Tracking the Russia investigations, Accessed March 25, 2019

CNN, California fake ID salesman who helped Mueller investigate Russians gets six months in jail, Oct. 10, 2018

Washington Post, Michael Flynn’s sentencing delayed after judge tells the ex-Trump adviser he might not avoid prison time, Dec. 18, 2018

Washington Post, Michael Cohen sentenced to three years in prison for crimes committed while working for Trump, Dec. 12, 2018

Washington Post, Read the indictment: The People of the State of New York against Paul J. Manafort Jr., March 13, 2019

Washington Post, Sentencing again delayed for Trump campaign aide Rick Gates, who continues to cooperate in Mueller probe, Jan. 15, 2019

AP, Manafort faces state charges after drawing more federal time, March 14, 2019

Sun Sentinel, Defiant Trump ally Roger Stone: 'I will plead not guilty,' Jan. 25, 2019

New York Times, Maria Butina, Russian Accused of Spying, Enters Plea Deal; Court Papers Backpedal on Sex Claims, Dec. 10, 2018

Vox, 3 takeaways from newly unsealed Michael Cohen search warrants, March 19, 2019

CNN, What's in the Cohen warrant documents, March 19, 2019

The Hill, Prosecutors say they need further cooperation from alleged Russian agent Maria Butina, Feb. 26, 2019

 

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