Manafort hit with mortgage fraud charges in New York

Paul Manafort was hit with yet another indictment on Wednesday, just minutes after the former Trump campaign chairman received his second prison sentence in a case brought by special counsel Robert Mueller.

The latest indictment, which came from a grand jury in New York City, charges Manafort with 16 counts of mortgage fraud, falsifying business records and other crimes in connection with loans he sought or obtained on properties owned by him and his family.

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Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. said the indictment addresses “state criminal violations which strike at the heart of New York’s sovereign interests.”

Some or all of the charges appear to stem from evidence introduced last August by Mueller’s team at Manafort’s federal trial in Virginia on various financial fraud charges. The jury there convicted him on two bank fraud counts, but deadlocked on seven others.

Vance said the new indictment involves “serious criminal charges for which the defendant has not been held accountable.”

A state law barring retrials on charges tried in federal court could pose a legal obstacle to the new prosecution. New York legislators have struck a deal to amend that law, but the new legislation has not passed. Legal experts have also said it may be unconstitutional to apply that law to past acts by Manafort.

The new state charges were announced on the same day a judge in Washington extended Manafort’s federal prison sentence to seven-and-a-half years. The case also serves as a reminder that President Donald Trump’s ability to grant Manafort a pardon or commutation for his federal crimes will not protect him from state charges.