The Justice Dept. Intervenes, Paul Manafort No Longer Heading To Rikers

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Paul Manafort (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Paul Manafort was supposed to head to Rikers Island while facing state fraud charges in New York. But it seems the plan changed after someone from the Attorney General’s office intervened. The New York Times reports:

Last week, Manhattan prosecutors were surprised to receive a letter from the second-highest law enforcement official in the country inquiring about Mr. Manafort’s case. The letter, from Jeffrey A. Rosen, Attorney General William P. Barr’s new top deputy, indicated that he was monitoring where Mr. Manafort would be held in New York. 

And then, on Monday, federal prison officials weighed in, telling the Manhattan district attorney’s office that Mr. Manafort, 70, would not be going to Rikers.

The newspaper adds:

Instead, he will await his trial at a federal lockup in Manhattan or at the Pennsylvania federal prison where he is serving a seven-and-a-half-year sentence for wide-ranging financial schemes, according to people with knowledge of the matter.