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Paul Manafort pleads not guilty to New York fraud charges

Paul Manafort, left, President Trump's onetime campaign chairman, arrives at Manhattan Supreme Court on Thursday.
(Timothy A. Clary / AFP/Getty Images)
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President Trump’s former campaign chairman has pleaded not guilty to state mortgage fraud charges in New York City.

Paul Manafort entered the plea at an arraignment Thursday in Manhattan.

Manafort walked with a limp as court officers led him down a public hallway to the courtroom. He wore a blue jail uniform.

The state case could keep Manafort locked up in the event Trump pardons his federal convictions stemming from the Russia probe.

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Manafort’s lawyers are expected to challenge the state case on double-jeopardy grounds. Prosecutors say their case is solid because it involves state, not federal crimes.

Manafort is serving a 7½-year prison sentence for misleading the U.S. government about foreign lobbying, encouraging witnesses to lie and tax fraud.

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