American investigators who consider money laundering charges against former head of Donald Trump's presidential campaign Paul Manafort, hope to encourage him to cooperate with regard to investigating a possible collusion between the Trump campaign members and Russia. Two sources familiar with the work of the investigation reported this to Reuters.
The team of the special adviser Robert Mueller is studying the financial and realtor records of Manafort in New York, as well as his participation in Ukrainian politics, sources said.
Between 2006 and 2013, Manafort bought three real estate properties in New York, including one in the Trump Tower in Manhattan. He paid for them in full, and then took mortgage loans. A former senior US law enforcement official told reporters that such tactics are often used as a means to conceal the origin of illegally obtained funds. Reuters however has no evidence that Manafort acted like this.
Sources also did not say whether Mueller really uncovered any evidence to accuse Manafort of money laundering, but they said it was critically important for investigating possible links of Trump's campaign with Russia. "If Mueller's team can threaten criminal charges against Manafort, they can use it as a leverage to convince him to cooperate," one source said.
