Mueller: Manafort Facing Up to 24.5 Years in Prison
The special counsel’s office said Friday that former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort faces between 19 and 24.5 years in prison for the tax and bank fraud charges for which he was convicted in August.
Citing federal sentencing guidelines, prosecutors also said that Manafort faces a fine of up to $24 million for his fraud.
I want to clarify something. Federal prosecutors agree with the sentencing guidelines of 19-24+ and don’t suggest Manafort should get less than that, but they don’t make a formal recommendation either.
— Tom Winter (@Tom_Winter) February 16, 2019
The longtime GOP operative was convicted on Aug. 21, 2018, on a series of charges related to income he received as a consultant for the Ukrainian government through 2014, more than two years before he joined the Trump campaign.
Manafort, who is 69 years old, also faced a separate trial in Washington, D.C., on foreign lobbying charges, but pleaded guilty to those crimes on Sept. 14, 2018.
He entered a cooperation agreement with the special counsel as part of that deal, though prosecutors have since accused him of lying numerous times to investigators.
Judge says Paul Manafort gave false statements to investigators to protect a Russian conspirator https://t.co/rqyxpI1oOS
— NBC News (@NBCNews) February 16, 2019
Prosecutors did not recommend a sentence for Manafort, but they did lay out the prison term they believe is warranted under federal sentencing guidelines.
Prosecutors were unrelenting in their criticism of Manafort.
“In the end, Manafort acted for more than a decade as if he were above the law, and deprived the federal government and various financial institutions of millions of dollars,” reads a court filing submitted by Andrew Weissmann, the top prosecutor handling the Manafort case.
It appears to be the beginning of the bitter end for Paul Manafort.
The Special Counsel’s Office is going to file its sentencing memo for his criminal case in Virginia TODAY. Stand by for a fast-moving Friday. pic.twitter.com/5RC5e3V5dn— Katelyn Polantz (@kpolantz) February 15, 2019
“The sentence here should reflect the seriousness of these crimes, and serve to both deter Manafort and others from engaging in such conduct.”
Prosecutors also argued that in addition to Manafort’s role in orchestrating a bank and tax fraud scheme, his “history and characteristics” count as “aggravating factors” in his sentencing guideline.
“Manafort has had every opportunity to succeed,” Weissmann wrote.
Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.
A version of this article appeared on The Daily Caller News Foundation website.
Truth and Accuracy
We are committed to truth and accuracy in all of our journalism. Read our editorial standards.
Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. Advertise Today.
