Filing In Patten Case Deepens Mystery About His Cooperation With The Feds
Source: Talking Points Memo
By Josh Kovensky
January 2, 2019 10:21 am
A mystery filing in the case of W. Sam Patten, the D.C. lobbyist who pleaded guilty to acting as an unregistered foreign agent in August, adds a curious wrinkle to what has generally been regarded as a relatively minor case.
On New Year’s Eve, prosecutors moved to keep a routine status update in Patten’s case entirely under wraps. The joint status reports filed after plea agreements but before sentencing have typically included a broad reference to the defendant’s ongoing cooperation.
The fact that Patten’s status report is entirely under seal could suggest that Patten, who has been seen as a more marginal figure in the foreign lobbying world, may in fact have more value to prosecutors, including special counsel Robert Mueller, than previously realized — or that a problem has developed with his cooperation.
In pleading guilty, Patten admitted that he helped a Ukrainian oligarch attend the Trump inauguration by illegally using a straw donor to purchase a $50,000 ticket to the event. The plea agreement required Patten to cooperate with the D.C. U.S. attorney’s office, Mueller’s office, and other law enforcement agencies.
Read more: https://talkingpointsmemo.com/muckraker/filing-in-patten-case-deepens-mystery-about-his-cooperation-with-the-feds
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D.C. federal prosecutors charged Patten with one count of lying to Congress and another count of failing to register as a foreign agent, after receiving a tip from the Senate Intelligence Committee. Patten’s case comes as investigations into the Trump inauguration heat up, amid allegations of pay-for-play that have swarmed the $107 million event.
Patten does not yet have a sentencing date. Prosecutors typically wait until they believe a cooperator has expended their usefulness before setting a sentencing date.
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