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US President Donald Trump pardoned his former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, associate Roger Stone and Charles Kushner, a real estate developer and father of Trump’s son-in-law.
Manafort was convicted as part of the special counsel’s investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. elections.
Trump had previously commuted the criminal sentence of Stone, who was convicted of lying under oath to lawmakers.
It was the second wave of pardons Trump has issued in two days and came just after he arrived in Palm Beach, Florida, for the holiday season.
In all, it granted full pardons to 26 people and commuted part or all of the sentences of three other people.
Trump’s pardon of Manafort prevented the former Republican operative from serving most of his seven-and-a-half-year sentence in prison.
Manafort, 70, was one of the first in Trump’s inner circle to face charges brought by special counsel Robert Mueller as part of his investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.
Stone was convicted in November 2019 by a Washington jury of lying under oath to lawmakers who were also investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election.
The american president @realDonaldTrump tonight he announced pardons for his former campaign manager Paul Manafort and his former adviser Roger Stone. In total tonight, he is announcing pardons for 26 people. @rtenews pic.twitter.com/9THttgy1eO
– Brian O’Donovan (@BrianOD_News) Dec 24, 2020
Trump commuted his sentence in July, a day before Stone began serving a three-year, four-month sentence.
Charles Kushner, father of Jared Kushner, was sentenced to two years in prison after pleading guilty in 2004 to 18 counts of tax evasion, witness tampering and illegal campaign donations.
In an unusual twist, the man who prosecuted Charles Kushner was Chris Christie, now a former New Jersey governor, who has also served as Trump’s adviser.
CNN quoted Christie as saying that the Charles Kushner case was “one of the most disgusting and disgusting crimes” it prosecuted.
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