he FBI director confirmed Monday the bureau is investigating whether anyone in the Trump campaign colluded with Russia to sway the election. Here’s what we’ve learned so far — beginning with the man who once ran the campaign.
One of Paul Manafort’s most vocal critics is in Ukraine. Politician Serhiy Leshchenko claims to have proof that Manafort, President Trump’s former campaign chairman, was part of a money laundering scheme in 2009. Leshchenko says a contract shows Manafort was paid $750,000 for about 500 computers.
But Leshchenko says the money was actually for work Manafort had done on behalf of former Ukranian President Viktor Yanukovych, who had ties to the Kremlim and Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“One of these payments … we now can prove was done to Paul Manafort,” Leshchenko says.
Manafort’s spokesperson questioned the validity of the documents and said the “allegations are baseless.”
Manafort was hired by the Trump campaign in March 2016. Beginning in late June, websites considered to be fronts for the Russians — DC Leaks, Guccifer 2.0 and WikiLeaks — began disclosing emails and data obtained in a wave of cyberattacks on Democratic Party officials.
At Monday’s hearing, FBI Director Comey confirmed the bureau opened its investigation in late July.
That same month, then-candidate Trump encouraged more cyberattacks on his rival Hillary Clinton.
“Russia – if you are listening – I hope you are able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing,” Mr. Trump said in July.
Then in August, Manafort left the campaign amid questions about his ties to the pro-Russian former Ukrainian leader.
As part of its investigation, the FBI is trying to determine whether there was any coordination between the Trump campaign and Russian officials.
But according to this declassified intelligence assessment, the Russian hacking efforts date back to as early as 2015.
Eric O’Neill is a former FBI counterintelligence operative.
“There are no hackers, there are only spies,” O’Neill says. “A spy is someone who is stealing information to further a cause or to gain information that helps the policies of the government, or as we’ve seen in recent years disrupt another government.”
On Monday, Comey suggested that it was possible that people colluded with Russia without knowing it. Law enforcement calls those people co-optees.( CBS NEWS)
Link: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/fbi-probe-russia-trump-manafort/
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