Clinton campaign lawyer Michael Sussmann indicted for allegedly lying to FBI during Russia investigation
A federal grand jury returned an indictment sought by sought by Special Counsel John Durham against Democratic lawyer Michael Sussmann, accusing him of lying to the FBI during the Russia investigation.
The indictment accuses Sussmann of hiding the fact that he was working for the Clinton campaign while pushing for an investigation into then-candidate Donald Trump’s ties to Russia in 2016.
Trump appointed Durham to investigate the origins of the Russia probe, with indictment coming just weeks before the five-year statute of limitations was set to expire.
Sussmann, whose firm had previously represented the Democratic National Committee, told the FBI’s James Baker in Sep. 2019 that he was not representing a client when pushing for an investigation into Trump. Sussmann denied any wrongdoing, while withholding the fact that he was working on behalf of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign.
Lawyers for Sussmann say that he “has committed no crime” and that prosecuting him “would be baseless, unprecedented and an unwarranted deviation from the apolitical and principled way in which the Department of Justice is supposed to do its work.”
“We are confident that if Mr. Sussmann is charged, he will prevail at trial and vindicate his good name,” they said.
