Mueller Tacks On Another Guilty Plea In Russia Probe

[DonViejo]

Source: Talking Points Memo




By Tierney Sneed | February 20, 2018 3:21 pm

A former lawyer for a major U.S. law firm pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court in Washington D.C., to lying to federal authorities in a case that is part of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s wide-ranging Russia probe.

The guilty plea by Alex van der Zwaan, who worked at the firm Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLC until he was terminated in November, came as part of a plea agreement between Mueller’s team. The case is being overseen by U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson, who is also overseeing Mueller’s cases against former Trump campaign aides Paul Manafort and Rick Gates.

Manafort, a former Trump campaign chairman, and Gates, his deputy who also worked for the campaign, pleaded not guilty last October to charges brought by Mueller related to their work in Ukraine for a pro-Russian political party. Skadden was recruited by Manafort to write a 2012 report justifying the Ukrainian government’s prosecution and conviction of Yulia Tymoshenko, a political rival of Viktor Yanukovych, whom Manafort was advising.

Van der Zwaan pleaded guilty to lying to investigators about his communications with Rick Gates and an unidentified third person. Van der Zwaan is the son-in-law of Ukrainian-Russian billionaire German Khan.



Read more: https://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/lawyer-alex-van-der-zwaan-pleads-guilty-in-mueller-probe

[dchill]

1. Another Brick in the Wall...

that Mueller is building around Donald Trump and his gang.

[BigmanPigman]

3. That's what Ted Lieu said on CNN just now.

Since it is Pink Floyd I took special notice of it (BigmanPigman...Floyd/Animals album).

Isn't it amazing how these people have so many Russian and Chinese connections. I don't recall any other administrations having this going on. This guy's wife is the daughter of a Russian oligarch and is very pregnant but CNN said he will not be seeing his kid's birth. His choice ...he lied. Even that GOP cowboy idiot who lost in Alabama spoke Russian. What's up with that? Pence's brother has financial ties to Russia too.
Fuckerberg speaks Russian and Chinese and The Moron's first wife had Chinese business connections while she helped him run his business and Ivanka's kids speak Mandarin. Now Kushner's Chinese finances are being investigated by Mueller.

Jeffrey Toobin, political analyst for CNN, said that he sees this as being about the middle of Mueller's investigation and far from ending. Wolf Blitzer and I agree.

[dchill]

4. I don't see any way around the idea that the entire GOP...

Or most of it, are Russian assets. I think they were bought by illegal rubles funneled through McConnell's and Ryan's PACs. I think it's likely the NRA was passing out Russian money, too. I've seen OSG's obsession with all things Russian since he married Ivana. The Chinese angle is not as familiar to me, but it sounds right. I do wonder, though, why Roy Moore would learn Russian before he learned English.

[Julian Englis]

2. Manafort really must be getting squeezed.

I wouldn't be surprised if Mueller is seeking to seize all his assets as products of a criminal enterprise. I would love to see him have to go to a public defender.

[Yavin4]

5. Taking pieces off the chess board one by one.

Meticulous. Calm. Unwavering. Unnerved. Quiet.

He's pressuring Trump and his inner circle day-in, day-out.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

6. pulling on threads

Funny how Mueller's team knew all about the emails Van der Zwaan destroyed. Maybe these crooks are not as clever as they thought.

The lawyer dealing with both Manafort and Gates -- Ukraine to campaign -- should have some really juicy documents for the team to savor.