The Los Angeles Times reports Rick Gates, Trump campaign deputy chairman, has cut a deal with Special Counsel Robert Mueller, will plead guilty to fraud charges, and is prepared to testify against his longtime mentor and associate Paul Manafort.
Gates will become the fifth* person connected to the Russia investigation to plead guilty to charges levied by Mueller's team. He joins Trump's former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, Trump campaign foreign policy advisor George Papadopoulos, Richard Pinedo, a California man who sold fake identities to Russians, and lawyer Alex van der Zwaan.
"Rick Gates is going to change his plea to guilty,'' said a person with direct knowledge of the new developments, adding that the revised plea will be presented in federal court in Washington "within the next few days.''
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The imminent change of Gates' plea follows negotiations over the last several weeks between [Gates' defense lawyer, Thomas C.] Green and two of Mueller's prosecutors – senior assistant special counsels Andrew Weissmann and Greg D. Andres.
According to a person familiar with those talks, Gates, a longtime political consultant, can expect "a substantial reduction in his sentence'' if he fully cooperates with the investigation. He said Gates is likely to serve about 18 months in prison.
The delicate terms reached by the opposing lawyers, he said, will not be specified in writing: Gates "understands that the government may move to reduce his sentence if he substantially cooperates, but it won't be spelled out.''
Mueller indicted Manafort and Gates on October 30, 2017 on 12 charges, including conspiracy against the United States, conspiracy to launder money, failure to file reports of foreign bank and financial accounts, being an unregistered agent of a foreign principal, and making false statements.
Gates' testimony, said a person familiar with the pending guilty plea, would place a "cherry on top'' of the government's already formidable case against Manafort.
The same individual said he did not believe Gates has information to offer Mueller's team that would "turn the screws on Trump.'' The president has repeatedly called the special counsel's investigation a "witch hunt.''
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In addition to the charges pending against Gates and Manafort, Mueller has secured formal guilty pleas from three people. Michael Flynn, the retired lieutenant general who campaigned for Trump and served as the president's first national security advisor, and George Papadopoulos, who was a foreign policy advisor to his campaign, have pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI.
On Friday, a Justice Department official announced the guilty plea on identity theft charges of a computer specialist from Santa Paula, Calif., Richard Pinedo, whose illicit services — unbeknownst to Pinedo — were used by Russian operatives who tried to influence the 2016 election.
Former Trump aide Richard Gates to plead guilty; agrees to testify against Manafort, sources say (LA Times)
LA Times: Former Trump aide Gates to plead guilty, testify against Manafort (CNN)
*Number updated to include Alex van der Zwaan's Tuesday indictment and guilty plea.