WASHINGTON (AA): Roger Stone, a longtime associate and close confidant of U.S. President Donald Trump, was arrested Friday in a pre-dawn FBI raid and indicted on seven counts brought by Special Counsel Robert Mueller.
Stone, 66, was taken into custody in Florida and is being charged with obstruction of Mueller’s probe, lying to federal lawmakers and witness tampering.
Stone had been under investigation for his alleged contacts with Wikileaks and its release of emails stolen from the Democratic National Committee.
The indictment alleges Stone worked with the Trump campaign through August 2015 and then maintained regular contacts with the campaign during the election cycle.
Part of those contacts included discussions with “senior Trump Campaign officials” about the information Wikileaks, which is referred to as “Organization 1,” had and how it could be damaging to the campaign of Trump’s Democratic challenger, Hillary Clinton, according to the indictment.
It alleges the senior Trump campaign officials contacted Stone about when Wikileaks would release its troves of stolen emails.
“After the July 22, 2016 release of stolen DNC emails by Organization 1, a senior Trump Campaign official was directed to contact STONE about any additional releases and what other damaging information Organization 1 had regarding the Clinton Campaign. STONE thereafter told the Trump Campaign about potential future releases of damaging material by Organization 1,” the indictment says.
No Trump campaign officials are named in the indictment, but it alleges that shortly after former Clinton Campaign chairman John Podesta’s emails were released Oct. 7, 2016, Stone received a text message from “an associate of the high-ranking Trump Campaign official” reading “well done.”
Stone is not charged with conspiring with Wikileaks, but with obstruction of an official proceeding, making false statements, and one count of witness tampering.
Stone made multiple false statements about his contacts with Wikileaks to the House intelligence committee, and worked to obstruct other probes by trying to persuade a witness to lie and withhold relevant information, according to the indictment.
CNN aired exclusive footage of the FBI raiding Stone’s Florida home with roughly a dozen agents before dawn.
Trump lashed out at the Mueller probe, repeating allegations it is a “witch hunt,” while calling into question on Twitter “Who alerted CNN to be there?”
“NO COLLUSION! Border Coyotes, Drug Dealers and Human Traffickers are treated better,” he said.
A federal magistrate judge ordered Stone released on $250,000 bond later Friday following an initial court appearance, according to multiple reports.
Addressing reporters outside the courthouse, Stone said he would plead not guilty to the charges and would not testify against Trump “because I would have to bear false witness against him.”
“I believe this is a politically motivated investigation,” Stone said as he was heckled by a group of spectators who called for him to be locked up. “I am troubled by the political motivations of the prosecutors.”
Stone is expected to be arraigned next week in the nation’s capital.
