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U.S. NEWS Saturday 1 September 2018

D.C. LOBBYIST sian national on lobbying paid Manafort for his own to the Justice Department have been rare, but in re-
Continued from Front and political consulting ser- political consulting work. requesting an investigation cent years, the Justice De-
W. Samuel Patten entered vices. The Russian national, Prosecutors also revealed into Patten. partment's national security
his plea in federal court in who formed a consulting Friday that in January 2017, "Due to concerns about division has taken a tough-
Washington as prosecutors company with Patten, is Patten lined up an Ameri- certain statements made er stance on enforcement
accused him of performing identified only as "Foreigner can as a straw purchaser by Mr. Patten, the Commit- of the law.q
lobbying and consulting A" in court papers. of four tickets to the inau- tee made a criminal refer-
work in the United States The documents trace years guration for Foreigner B to ral to the Department of
but failing to register as a of work Patten performed circumvent the ban on for- Justice. While the charge,
foreign agent as required for a wealthy Ukrainian eign contributions to the in- and resultant plea, do not
by the Justice Department. businessman and a Ukrai- augural committee. appear to directly involve
As part of his agreement nian political party known Patten was informed in writ- our referral, we appreciate
with prosecutors, Patten as the Opposition Bloc be- ing of the ban, court pa- their review of this matter,"
admitted to lying to the ginning in 2014. The goal pers say. Yet, to conceal the senators said.
Senate intelligence com- all along, prosecutors say, that Foreigner B was paying Patten was released on his
mittee during its investiga- was to influence U.S. policy. for the tickets, court papers own recognizance Friday
tion into Russian election But they say Patten never say Patten had the Ameri- without a sentencing date.
interference and of par- filed under the Foreign can front the $50,000 for He faces a maximum sen-
ticipating in a scheme to Agents Registration Act or the tickets. The straw pur- tence of five years in prison.
circumvent the ban on for- disclosed that he was rep- chaser, who is not named, During the court hearing Fri-
eign donations to President resenting the foreign busi- then was reimbursed by day, U.S. District Judge Amy
Donald Trump's inaugural nessman or the Opposition Patten's company, which Berman Jackson told Pat-
committee by lining up Bloc. in turn received the same ten that she couldn't pro-
a straw purchaser to pay Prosecutors say in 2015 Pat- amount from Foreigner B vide any estimate of his po-
$50,000 for four tickets to ten worked to set up meet- via an offshore bank ac- tential sentence because
the inauguration. ings between the Ukrainian count in Cyprus. U.S. sentencing guidelines W. Samuel Patten leaves the
The Patten case was re- businessman and sever- Patten then attended the don't have a section for federal court in Washington,
ferred by special counsel al U.S. officials including inauguration with Foreigner violations of the Foreign Friday, Aug. 31, 2018.
Robert Mueller's team to members of Congress and B. Agents Registration Act. Associated Press
the United States attor- leaders in the State Depart- The topic came up a year Prosecutions of the offense
ney in Washington, said Bill ment. later in January 2018 when
Miller, a spokesman for that Later, Patten wrote talking Patten testified before the
office. Andrew Weissmann, points and letters used to Senate intelligence com-
one of the lead Muel- lobby U.S. officials on the mittee as part of its investi-
ler team attorneys in the behalf of the businessman, gation into Russian election
Manafort prosecution, was who is referred to as "For- interference and possible
also in the courtroom Friday eigner B." Patten also draft- coordination with Trump
during Patten's appear- ed an op-ed for Foreigner B associates.
ance. And Patten's plea that sought to address con- According to court papers,
agreement specifically re- cerns about Ukraine's abil- Patten misled the commit-
quires him to cooperate ity to work with the Trump tee during his testimony
with the special counsel's administration. and withheld certain docu-
probe. Court papers say the op-ed ments to conceal that For-
Patten's attorney Stuart was published in February eigner B had been behind
Sears declined to com- 2017 in a "national United the purchase of inaugura-
ment. States media outlet," but tion tickets. He also gave
Patten was a business asso- they do not name the me- "misleading testimony"
ciate of Konstantin Kilimnik, dia outlet or Foreigner B. about his representation of
a man U.S. authorities have However, on February 6, foreigners in the U.S. to hide
said has ties to Russian intel- 2017, an op-ed published that he had failed to regis-
ligence. under Serhiy Lyovochkin's ter as a foreign agent with
Kilimnik worked closely with name appeared in U.S. the Justice Department.
Manafort, who was found News and World Report. After the congressional
guilty this month of eight The op-ed identifies Lyo- testimony, Patten then de-
financial counts. Kilimnik vochkin as a "leader of the stroyed documents relating
also is a co-defendant in Opposition Bloc" and ad- to his foreign work.
a pending case against dresses the same topic as In a joint statement Friday,
Manafort in Washington, described in Patten's case. committee chairman Sen.
brought by Mueller's team, Lyovochkin's name also Richard Burr, R-N.C., and
that accuses them both of came up during Manafort's the panel's top ranking
witness tampering. trial earlier this month. Pros- Democrat, Sen. Mark War-
Court papers don't refer to ecutors detailed how he ner of Virginia, confirmed
Kilimnik by name, but say was among the wealthy that the committee had
Patten worked with a Rus- Ukrainian businessmen who made a criminal referral