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Former Trump Campaign Associate Pleads Guilty in Russia Probe

By Masood Farivar February 23, 2018

Rick Gates, a former associate of President Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign, pleaded guilty Friday to conspiracy and lying charges related to Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the election.

The plea came hours after ABC News reported Gates sent a letter to his friends and family earlier in the day telling them about his plan to plead guilty in the special counsel's case again him.

Gates could face 57 to 71 months in prison, but prosecutors could ask for a lower sentence based on his cooperation, Federal Judge Amy Jackson said.

Gates is the third former Trump campaign associate to plead guilty to criminal charges and agree to cooperate with Mueller's investigation into whether there was collusion between the Trump team and Russia during the 2016 election.

Former national security adviser Michael Flynn and former Trump campaign foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos last year pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about their interactions with Russian officials.

Gates faced decades in prison over a raft of charges brought by Mueller.A guilty plea to a lesser charge and cooperation with prosecutors could help him reduce jail time.

The plea comes a day after Mueller's office announced a new indictment against Gates and his former business partner and former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort.

Friday afternoon, after Gates' indictment, Manafort released a statement via Twitter. He said, "Notwithstanding that Rick Gates pled today, I continue to maintain my innocence. I had hoped and expected my business colleague would have had the strength to continue the battle to prove our innocence. For reasons yet to surface he chose to do otherwise. This does not alter my commitment to defend myself against the untrue piled up charges contained in the indictments against me."

The new indictment accuses Gates and Manafort of bank fraud and tax evasion among other charges, alleging the two men avoided taxes by hiding millions of dollars in consulting fees from Ukrainian politicians as bank loans from offshore entities.

Manafort and Gates were initially charged in a 12-count indictment in October in connection with a multi-million-dollar money laundering conspiracy tied to their political work in Ukraine. They also were accused of failing to register as agents of a foreign government.

Manafort headed the Trump campaign from June to August 2016. Gates was brought into the campaign by Manafort and stayed on even after Manafort was fired a few months later following revelations about his Russian connections.

The charges against Gates and Manafort are not related to a key question Mueller has been investigating since his appointment last Maywhether there was any coordination between the Trump campaign and Russia.

Last week, Muller's office announced charges against 13 Russian nationals and three Russian entities for conspiring to disrupt the U.S. elections and tilt it in favor of the real estate tycoon. The indictment, however, did not allege collusion on the part of the Trump campaign.