A rare sighting of a white black zwaan..
Mueller's office just unsealed a charge against a new player in the Russia investigation
Sonam Sheth
Special counsel Robert Mueller's office has charged a wealthy Russian lawyer with making false statements to the FBI, according to a court filing unsealed on Tuesday.
Alex van der Zwaan, the lawyer, is well-connected and represents the interests of a number of Russian oligarchs. He is also the son-in-law of German Khan, a Ukrainian-Russian billionaire and businessman.
Van der Zwaan was charged with "willfully and knowingly" making ""alse, fictitious, and fraudulent statements and representations" to federal investigators about his work for the law firm Skadden, Arps, Meagher, & Flom LLP and Associates in 2012. The firm was employed by the Ukraine Ministry of Justice to compile a report about the trial of former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko.
Tymoshenko was jailed in 2011 after being convicted by the Ukrainian government of abuse of power. Tymoshenko's trial and subsequent conviction were criticized by human-rights groups and deemed politically motivated by the US, the UK, German, Italy, Spain, and other European countries.
Skadden was roped into the controversy when it emerged that Ukraine's former Justice Minister, Oleksandr Lavrynovych, embezzled over $1 million in order to pay the law firm. After being pressured by US and Ukrainian prosecutors, Skadden refunded about half that amount to the Ukrainian government. Mueller's focus on the Skadden case was first reported last September.
Tuesday's filing also mentions Rick Gates, the former deputy manager of President Donald Trump's campaign.
According to the document, Van der Zwaan misled FBI investigators about his last communication with Gates, which took place in mid-August 2016 and consisted of "an innocuous text message."
This is a developing story.
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