Lobbyist gets probation in case spun off from Russia probe
Source: Associated Press
By CHAD DAY
today
WASHINGTON (AP) — A Washington political consultant initially entangled in the Russia investigation was sentenced Friday to three years of probation for illegal lobbying and skirting the ban on foreign donations to President Donald Trump’s inaugural committee.
W. Samuel Patten, 47, and prosecutors had asked for leniency, citing his cooperation in special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation and other ongoing probes. The sentencing comes as federal prosecutors in New York continue to investigate foreign donations to the Presidential Inaugural Committee and as the Justice Department has been cracking down on foreign lobbying violations.
Separately, prosecutors filed charges Thursday against former Obama White House counsel Greg Craig, accusing him of lying to the government to conceal his own work on behalf of the government of Ukraine. Craig denies wrongdoing and pleaded not guilty Friday.
In Patten’s case, he pleaded guilty to violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act for lobbying on behalf of the Opposition Bloc, a Ukrainian political party. He also admitted to orchestrating a $50,000 straw-donor scheme to purchase tickets from the inaugural committee on behalf of a wealthy Ukrainian client. Federal law bars such committees from accepting foreign donations, a fact Patten has admitted he knew when he violated the law.
Read more: https://apnews.com/b4480eff482f4cf38ecf722b82167631
= new reply since forum marked as read
