Manafort ex-son-in-law agrees to plea deal: report

Paul Manafort’s former son-in-law has reportedly agreed to a plea deal with the Justice Department.

Jeffrey Yohai, who was divorced from Manafort’s daughter last year, has agreed to cooperate with federal prosecutors working on different criminal investigations as part of the plea deal, two sources with knowledge of the situation told Reuters.

Manafort, Trump’s former campaign manager, has been charged on several counts related to money laundering and other financial crime in special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, and is set to go on trial later this year.

The sources told Reuters that Yohai may be asked to help Mueller in his prosecution of Manafort in an effort to pressure him to plead guilty and cooperate with prosecutors.

Yohai pleaded guilty to misusing construction loan funds and a bank account overdraft charge following an investigation into his real estate and bank dealings that predates the special counsel’s probe, Reuters reported on Thursday.

News of Yohai’s plea deal falls on the one-year anniversary of Mueller’s appointment to lead the federal investigation that is broadly examining Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, as well as possible ties between the Trump campaign and Russia. Trump has repeatedly described the federal investigation as a “witch hunt.”

Other individuals with ties to Manafort are also cooperating with Mueller’s team.

The special counsel strategically built up the pressure against Manafort by getting his longtime business partner Richard Gates to flip and begin cooperating with Mueller’s team, legal experts told The Hill earlier this year.

Mueller has also filed dozens of charges against Manafort over the course of his yearlong probe. Mueller first indicted Gates and Manafort on 12 counts in his original indictment, before slapping on 23 additional charges in late February.

Manafort, who oversaw the Trump campaign for three months during the 2016 presidential election, is still battling the special counsel’s team in court.

Jason Maloni, Manafort’s spokesman, declined to comment on the matter.

Hilary Potashner, a California-based public defender representing Yohai, did not immediately respond to The Hill’s request for comment.

–Updated at 6:03 p.m.