U.S. special counsel recommends six months in prison for Papadopoulos

 

FILE PHOTO: Robert Mueller testifies before the House Judiciary Committee hearing on Federal Bureau of Investigation oversight on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, U.S., June 13, 2013. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas/File Photo

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Special Counsel Robert Mueller recommended in a court filing on Friday that a judge sentence former Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos to up to six months in prison for lying to federal agents investigating whether Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

 

Papadopoulos pleaded guilty in October to lying to FBI agents and is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 7.

 

According to Mueller's sentencing memorandum to the judge, Papadopoulos lied about his contacts with people who claimed to have ties to top Russian officials, including his meeting with a professor who said Russia had "dirt" on Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

 

"The defendant's crime was serious and caused damage to the government's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election," Mueller's memo said.

 

"The defendant lied in order to conceal his contacts with Russians and Russian intermediaries during the campaign and made his false statements to investigators on January 27, 2017, early in the investigation, when key investigative decisions, including who to interview and when, were being made," Mueller said.

 

Mueller said the government believed a sentence of up to six months in prison was "appropriate and warranted" along with a fine of $9,500.

 

Papadopoulos unwittingly played a key role in triggering the FBI investigation into possible collusion between Trump's campaign in Russia, which the president repeatedly has denounced as a "witch hunt."

 

While drinking at a London bar in May 2016, he told the Australian ambassador to Great Britain that the Russians had hacked thousands of emails that could damage Clinton's presidential campaign.

 

When the emails began appearing publicly two months later, the envoy, Alexander Downer, told U.S. diplomats about what Papadopoulos had said, according to U.S. officials familiar with the events.

 

Muller also told the judge that Papadopoulos had not fully cooperated with prosecutors.

 

"The defendant did not provide 'substantial assistance,' and much of the information provided ... came only after the government confronted him with his own emails, text messages, internet search history and other information it obtained via search warrants and subpoenas," Mueller wrote.

 

Mueller also said Papadopoulos avoided until the last moment telling prosecutors about a cell phone he used in London that had "substantial communications" on it between he and the professor who claimed to know about Russian information on Clinton.

 

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-08-18

One more witch headed to the lockup 

Edited August 18, 20187 yr by Chomper Higgot

Mueller needs to finish this fiasco and find another government meal ticket.

When he ends it most of the Trumps and associated swamp dwellers should expect to be behind bars.

Papadopoulos is one lucky dude if that’s all he gets in club fed but if trump is still in office when he gets out look out cause trump is one petty vindictive nasty viscous criminal 

11 hours ago, Slip said:

When he ends it most of the Trumps and associated swamp dwellers should expect to be behind bars.

None of these guys were the swamp dwellers. They were all trying to ride Trump's coat tails.  This is just another case of lying to the FBI. He has not been accused of anything to do with the Russians.  For the life of me, I can't figure out why these people avoid telling the truth or just keeping their mouth shut when they really have nothing to hide.  I think they get intimidated when the FBI comes knocking.

11 hours ago, Trouble said:

None of these guys were the swamp dwellers. They were all trying to ride Trump's coat tails.  This is just another case of lying to the FBI. He has not been accused of anything to do with the Russians.  For the life of me, I can't figure out why these people avoid telling the truth or just keeping their mouth shut when they really have nothing to hide.  I think they get intimidated when the FBI comes knocking.

I love how you just casually say “This is just another case of lying to the FBI” like this is the new norm and doesn’t warrant any reproach because under Trump this is now almost acceptable.   

This race to the bottom is a worrying trend perpetuated by people like yourself who think it’s no big deal. Whatever happened to integrity and morality? What happened to the good of the people over personal benefit? Whatever happened to doing the right thing and truth be out?

You really shouldn’t be questioning why someone wasn’t clever enough to avoid telling the truth. But I guess that’s as much a reflection on you as it is them. 

 

 

12 hours ago, Trouble said:

None of these guys were the swamp dwellers. They were all trying to ride Trump's coat tails.  This is just another case of lying to the FBI. He has not been accused of anything to do with the Russians.  For the life of me, I can't figure out why these people avoid telling the truth or just keeping their mouth shut when they really have nothing to hide.  I think they get intimidated when the FBI comes knocking.

 "For the life of me, I can't figure out why these people avoid telling the truth or just keeping their mouth shut when they really have nothing to hide. "

It is this type of logic or lack of, that leads people to support Trump.

Nothing to hide? why do you think they made a deal with Papadopulos ? He lied because lying  to the commision was less dangerous to him than telling the truth and he thought he would not get cought.

  In case you still think he had nothing to hide , the answer to the above question is , they made a deal with him so that he would reveal all the things he was hiding.

If you sit for 6 hours and ask someone questions they will eventually make a mistake. Human nature.  Still waiting for the big Russian collusion.  

So I guess wire tapping political opponents is legal now

  

Six months for the "coffee boy". Makes you wonder what the rest will get.

 He was shooting his mouth off like a big shot in a bar, probably bragging to the Australian ambassador trying to impress him. Moron should get six years just for being stupid.