BREAKING: Michael Cohen Pleads Guilty to Making False Statements to Congress on Russia Contacts

Aidan McLaughlinNov 29th, 2018, 9:04 am

Michael Cohen, the longtime lawyer for President Donald Trump, is expected to plead guilty to making false statements to Congress regarding the Russia investigation, ABC News reported Thursday morning.

Cohen is now cooperating with Special Counsel Robert Mueller‘s probe, per ABC. George Stephanopoulos broke in with an ABC News Special Report Thursday morning, reporting that the plea is voluntary.

Per ABC:

Cohen’s earlier plea deal with federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York implicated President Trump in campaign finance felonies. Since then, Cohen has spent more than 70 hours in interviews with Mueller’s team. The questioning has focused on contacts with Russians by Trump associates during the campaign, Trump’s business ties to Russia, obstruction of justice and talk of possible pardons, sources familiar with the discussions have told ABC News.

Trump’s longtime fixer is set to appear in Manhattan court Thursday morning to plead guilty. Cohen had previously taken a plea deal in relation to the payoffs of women claiming to have had affairs with Trump, but this new deal turns the lawyer into a witness in Mueller’s investigation into the Trump campaign’s ties to Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Cohen reportedly spent 70 hours with Mueller’s team, being questioned on contacts between the Trump campaign and Russians, Trump’s business ties to Russia, and possible obstruction of justice — including pardons.

UPDATE: More from Cohen’s plea in court:

CNN's latest: According to info being read out in court, Cohen made false statement regarding Trump Tower deal in Moscow that he was working on in 2015 & 2016. Cohen had discussion about the project even later. Cohen had previously said that the deal was stopped in January 2016.

— David Wright (@DavidWright_CNN) November 29, 2018