A London-based lawyer has admitted making false statements to investigators examining links between Donald Trump's election campaign team and Russia.
Alex Van der Zwaan leaves the US District Courthouse after pleading guilty to charges of making false statements to investigators. Photo: AFP / Samuel Corum / Anadolu Agency
Court documents accuse Alex van der Zwaan of making false statements when questioned about his work for Ukraine's Ministry of Justice.
He is the 19th person to be charged by special counsel Robert Mueller.
On Friday, 13 Russians were charged with tampering in the 2016 US election. They are alleged to have posed as Americans, and opened financial accounts in their name, as well as organising and promoting political rallies within the United States.
Russia's foreign minister dismissed the charges as "blather" and President Trump said it was proof that there was no collusion between his camp and Russia.
Court documents said van der Zwaan worked for a firm tasked in 2012 with preparing a report for Ukraine's Ministry of Justice on the trial of former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko.
Ms Tymoshenko was jailed the year before for criminally exceeding her powers, charges she said were politically motivated.
The report concluded that her trial was justified and that due process was followed.
Van der Zwaan appeared in court on Tuesday, and the judge set sentencing for 3 April.
Court papers filed in Washington DC levelled the following accusations against him:
- He deleted or did not produce emails sought by the special counsel's office
- He made a false statement about when he was last in contact with "Person A", who has not been identified
- He made a false statement about when he was last in contact with former Trump aide Rick Gates, who has already been charged by the special counsel with conspiracy to launder money
- Mr Gates and his former colleague Paul Manafort, who went on to become Mr Trump's campaign chief. have also been charged by the special counsel with acting as "unregistered agents" of Ukrainian politician Viktor Yanukovych and his party.
Mr Yanukovych was a bitter rival of Ms Tymoshenko and defeated her to become president in 2010. He was later ousted.
