Paul Manafort, convicted felon and former campaign manager to President Donald Trump, has been released to home confinement amid concerns over the spread of coronavirus in prisons, his attorney told multiple news outlets Wednesday.
The 71-year-old former lawyer was let out of FCI Loretto, a federal correctional facility in central Pennsylvania, early Wednesday. Manafort will spend the remainder of his roughly 7.5-year sentence in home confinement after serving just under 30% of the time in prison. ABC News was the first to report his release.
Manafort was convicted of eight counts, including tax and bank fraud, in August 2018 by a federal jury in Virginia. He reached a plea deal with special counsel Robert Mueller’s team in September 2018 and pleaded guilty to two counts, one of conspiracy against the U.S. and another of conspiracy to obstruct justice.
Manafort is one of six Trump associates charged as a result of Mueller’s investigation to into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Michael Cohen, Trump’s former personal lawyer who pleaded guilty in 2018 to tax fraud, campaign finance violations and lying to Congress, asked to be released from prison because of coronavirus concerns, but was denied.
Cohen had been set for home confinement on May 1 after a 14-day quarantine, but the release was rescinded, his lawyer told CNBC.
Cohen is serving his three-year sentence in a federal prison camp in Otisville, New York. He is scheduled for release in November 2021.
CORRECTION: An earlier version incorrectly stated Michael Cohen had been released to home confinement. His request was denied.
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