Paul Manafort: Ex-Trump aide charged with conspiring to defraud US in Ukraine dealings

He and his ex-business associate Rick Gates including conspiracy to launder money.

The charges are conspiracy against the United States, conspiracy to launder money, unregistered agent of a foreign principal, false and misleading FARA statements, false statements, and seven counts of failure to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts.

The claim the two men “acted as unregistered agents of the Government of Ukraine” and its president Victor Yanukovych from 2006-2015.

They were legally required to declare their work lobbying on behalf of a “foreign principal” such as a foreign government or political party, however they are alleged to have hidden it from the US government. They allegedly also funneled over $75 million (£57 million) through offshore bank accounts and did not pay any tax on their income from Ukraine.

It is claimed Mr Manafort personally laundered over $18 million (£14 million) through offshore accounts, which he used to fund a “lavish lifestyle” in the US, while Mr Gates funnelled $3 million into his own bank accounts.

The FBI charges say the two men “funnelled millions of dollars in payments into foreign nominee companies and bank accounts”, with offshore accounts in Cyprus, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the Seychelles, and even in the UK.

It also claims the businessmen gave “false and misleading statements” to the Department of Justice when they were asked about their work in 2016.

The indictment gives details of 12 shell companies in Cyprus, two in the Grenadines, and one in the United Kingdom. There were also 23 holding companies in the US allegedly belonging to Mr Manafort.

Former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort faces charges including conspiracy against the USEPA

Former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort faces charges including conspiracy against the US

Both Mr Manafort and Mr Gates hid the existence of these accounts, “falsely and repeatedly reporting to their tax preparers and to the United States that they had no foreign bank accounts”, the indictment says.

While not paying any tax on his earnings as a lobbyist for the Ukrainian government and President Yanukovych’s Party of Regions, it is alleged Mr Manafort “used his hidden overseas wealth to enjoy a lavish lifestyle in the United States”.

Payments detailed in the indictment show Mr Manafort purchased a Mercedes Benz, multiple Range Rovers, expensive clothes and antiques with money funnelled through the offshore accounts.

He also paid a landscape gardener $164,740 to work on his home in the Hamptons. 

Paul Manafort surrendered to the FBI over 12 explosive chargesReuters

Paul Manafort surrendered to the FBI over 12 explosive charges

Manafort was director of the Trump campaign from June-August 2016EPA

Manafort was director of the Trump campaign from June-August 2016

The indictment reads: “Manafort, without reporting the income to his tax preparer or the United States, spent millions of dollars on luxury goods and services for himself and his extended family through payments wired from offshore nominee accounts to United States vendors.

“Manafort also used these offshore accounts to purchase multi-million dollar properties in the United States.

“Manafort then borrowed millions of dollars in loans using these properties as collateral, thereby obtaining cash in the United States without reporting and paying taxes on the income.”

Mr Gates used money from the offshore accounts “to pay for his personal expenses, including his mortgage, children’s tuition, and interior decorating of his Virginia residence”, the charges state.

Rick Gates, left, also had a key role in the Trump campaignReuters

Rick Gates, left, also had a key role in the Trump campaign

The former Ukrainian president whom Mr Manafort and Mr Gates represented in Washington DC, Victor Yanukovych, led the country from 2010-2014. They represented him and his party from 2006-2015, including when he was overthrown in a popular uprising and fled to Russia.

The indictment states: “Among other things, they lobbied multiple Members of Congress and their staffs about Ukraine sanctions, the validity of Ukraine elections, and the propriety of Yanukovych’s imprisoning his presidential rival, Yulia Tymoshenko.”

The FBI claims the two men deliberately distanced themselves from the lobbying work in letters to the government as they hid the huge sums of money they earned.

The charges against Mr Manafort and Mr Gates are the first to emerge from the FBI investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 Presidential Election.

Although they do not relate to interference in US democracy, there is speculation that these are the first of many charges set to be brought against key figures in the Trump campaign and administration.

Mr Manafort, 68, served as Trump campaign manager from June to August of 2016 before resigning as these allegations began to emerge. Mr Gates retained a senior role in the campaign following his former business partner’s departure.

The two men have turned themselves into the FBI.