FBI accuses Manafort of bribing EU politicians to lobby for Yanukovych government
The indictment accuses Manafort of paying the former politicians, informally known as the “Hapsburg group,” to appear to be “independent” analysts when in fact they were paid lobbyists, AP reports.
"Court papers accuse Manafort of using offshore accounts to pay the group more than 2 million euros," the article says.
The indictment says the group was managed by a former European chancellor. It is reported that some of the covert lobbying took place in the U.S.
The new allegation against Paul Manafort comes in a newly unsealed indictment made public Friday. The indictment followed a guilty plea by Manafort’s longtime business associate, Rick Gates, the agency reports.
As reported, Trump’s former campaign chairman Paul Manafort was accused of laundering up to $30 million using offshore accounts, tax evasion and bank fraud.
In October 2017, special counsel Robert S. Mueller III revealed an indictment against former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, which includes lobbying for former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych and his pro-Russian Party of Regions for several years. Manafort was not registered in the United States as a "foreign agent" and evaded taxes.
The new indictment, like the previous one, is not connected with Trump's presidential campaign and possible Moscow’s meddling in the 2016 United States elections.
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