Donald Trump's Former Advisor Thomas Barrack Arrested, Indicted on Federal Lobbying Charge
July 20 2021, Published 4:22 p.m. ET
Donald Trump's friend Thomas Barrack has been arrested on federal charges related to illegally lobbying the former president on behalf of the United Arab Emirates.
The former president's ally -- who served as the chairman of Trump's 2017 inaugural fund -- was taken into custody in Los Angeles on Tuesday after an almost three-year probe conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Barrack was charged on a seven-count indictment for acting as an agent for UAE from 2016-2018, which federal prosecutors allege was an effort to sway the foreign policy position of Trump's 2016 campaign.
The 74-year-old is also being charged with obstruction of justice and making false statements to federal agents during an interview in June 2019.
Matthew Grimes of Aspen, Colorado, 27, and UAE national Rashid Sultan Rashid Al Malik Alshahhi, 43, were also charged on Tuesday.
According to the indictment, all three men capitalized off Barrack's status to "advance the interests of and provide intelligence to the UAE while simultaneously failing to notify the Attorney General that their actions were taken at the direction of senior UAE officials."
Thomas Barrack
“On multiple occasions, Barrack referred to A