Manafort’s Ex-Business Partner Rick Gates Pleads Guilty

Rick Gates, a former Trump campaign official and ex-business partner of Paul Manafort, pleaded guilty to fraud and lying to the FBI on Friday. Gates entered his guilty plea in a D.C. federal court and reportedly struck a deal to cooperate with special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation. Gates pleaded guilty to two new counts brought against him: “conspiracy against the United States” and making a false statement to federal investigators. Gates and Manafort were charged with various financial crimes including money laundering concerning work they did in Ukraine. Manafort was Trump’s campaign chairman and Gates served as his deputy. Gates is the third former Trump campaign official to reach a plea agreement with Mueller.