I lied to FBI about Russia links out of loyalty to Trump, convicted campaign aide is saying
- Former Trump policy advisor George Papadopoulos pleaded guilty in October to lying to the FBI
- He mislead investigators about his contacts with a London-based professor who had Kremlin contacts
- He said he thought the professor was a 'nothing' when in fact he knew the man had substantial connections to Russian government officials
- A source with knowledge of the federal probe now says Papadopoulos misled agents out of what he said was loyalty to President Trump
- The White House has diminished Papadopoulso as a low-level aide
- He now has given multiple interviews to Robert Mueller's investigators
- Trump had emphatically denied any contacts with Russians
George Papadopoulos, who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about efforts by Russia contacts to arrange a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and President Trump, claims he did so out of loyalty to the president.
Trump had emphatically denied any contacts with Russians, and Papadopoulos wanted to avoid contradicting the president.
Papadopoulos met with investigators not long after Trump's denial. 'It's all fake news. It's phony stuff. It didn't happen,' the president had said in January.
Papadopoulos made the initial false claims out of loyalty to Trump, a source with direct knowledge of the investigation told ABC News.
President Donald Trump had emphatically denied any contacts with Russians, and George Papadopoulos wanted to avoid contradicting the president, according to a report
Papadopoulos now admits he wasn't truthful when he described a meeting in London with a professor who said he had met with government officials in Moscow and that the Russians had 'thousands of emails' on Trump rival Hillary Clinton.
Among other things, he told investigators that he learned information from him before joining the campaign, when in fact the overture happened around March 14, after he had been named as a Trump foreign policy advisor.
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'In truth and in fact, the professor only took interest in defendant Papadopoulos because of his status with the Campaign,' according to court filings.
Special Robert Mueller's team of investigators is probing Russian interference in the presidential election.
Papadopoulos also told investigators the professor was 'a nothing' talking up his connections.
Papadopoulos attended a March 31 national security meeting with Trump and foreign policy advisors where he stated that he had connections that would help arrange a meeting between Trump and Putin, according to the information released by the government. Trump tweeted out a photo of the meeting at the time
Papadopoulos is seen at the middle of the table, at far left in this photo
But Papadopoulos 'understood that the professor had substantial connections to Russian government officials (and had met with some of those officials in Moscow immediately prior to telling defendant Papadopoulos about the 'thousands of emails,' according to information that accompanied his guilty plea.
Papadopoulos told investigators it was at that meeting where he stated he had connections that would help arrange a meeting between Trump and Putin, according to an FBI information released Monday. He repeatedly tried to use the professors contacts to try to arrange a meeting between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The Washington Post reported that the description of the professor matched Joseph Mifsud, the director of the London Academy of Diplomacy, who appeared in an email described to the paper.
Papadopoulos later described a March 31 national security meeting with Trump and foreign policy advisors where he stated that he had connections that would help arrange a meeting between Trump and Putin, according to the information.
Special counsel Robert Mueller's office announced a guilty plea filed secretly in October by former Trump foreign policy advisor George Papadopoulos, who concealed information about his conversations with an overseas professor about Russia
'I don't remember much about that meeting,' Trump told reporters as he headed out for a 12-day trip to Asia. 'It was a very unimportant meeting. Took place a long time – don't remember much about it,' Trump added.
'Through his false statements and omissions, defendant Papadopoulos impeded the FBI's ongoing investigation into the existence of any links or coordination between individuals associated with the Campaign and the Russian government's efforts to interfere with the 2016 presidential election,' according to court documents filed by prosecutors.
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