Mueller charges lawyer tied to Gates and Manafort with lying in Russia probe

A lawyer linked to Rick Gates and Paul Manafort, two of President Trump’s former campaign aides ensnared in the ongoing Russian probe, has been charged by special counsel Robert S. Mueller III with lying to federal investigators.

The lawyer, Alex van der Zwaan, previously worked at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, a prominent law firm that worked on a controversial report used to defend the pro-Russian government of Ukraine’s prosecution of a political opponent.

Manafort was an longtime advisor to former Ukraine’s Kremlin-allied former president, Viktor Yanukovich. Manafort and Gates, his partner and later his deputy on the Trump campaign, have been charged with laundering money earned during their work on Ukraine’s behalf.

Van der Zwaan is accused of lying to investigators about his communications with Gates and an another person, who is not named in the court filing. He also is accused of withholding or deleting emails sought by the special counsel’s office.

Van der Zwaan is scheduled to appear in court for a plea hearing on Tuesday afternoon.

Gates is expected to plead guilty in the coming days and testify against Manafort, The Times reported on Sunday.