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Colony Capital Inc. Chairman and CEO Thomas Barrack said during a speech at the closing reception of the Milken Institute Japan Seminar held in Tokyo, Japan on Monday, March 25, 2019. The meeting brought together business leaders and government officials to discuss the geopolitical, economic and social issues facing Japan. Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg via Getty Images
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Thomas Barrack, a private equity investor, is a close friend of the former president Donald TrumpArrested in Los Angeles on Tuesday morning on federal charges related to illegally lobbying Trump on behalf of the United Arab Emirates.
Barack was charged with two other men in a seven-count federal court in Brooklyn, New York. He was the chairman of Trump’s 2017 inauguration fund and served as his adviser during Trump’s presidential campaign.
Residents of Santa Monica, California are accused of working with other defendants to secretly advance the interests of the UAE through the foreign policy stance of Trump’s 2016 campaign and the foreign policy stance of the United States under the guidance of the country’s senior officials. During Trump’s presidency, he held government positions from April 2018.
The indictment pointed out that Barak informally provided advice on Middle East policy to U.S. officials during this period and sought to appoint the U.S. government to high-level positions, including serving as a special envoy for the Middle East.
In charge of the 74-year-old military camp are 27-year-old Matthew Grimes, from Aspen, Colorado, and 43-year-old UAE national Rashid Sultan Rashid Al Malik Alshahhi.
Grimes, who worked for Colony Capital, a private equity firm founded by Barrack, was arrested in California on Tuesday.
The Justice Department said in a press release: “Barak has repeatedly referred to Alshahhi as the UAE’s’secret weapon’ for advancing its foreign policy agenda in the United States.”
In an interview with federal law enforcement officials in June 2019, Barak was also charged with obstruction of justice and making multiple false statements.
“The defendants repeatedly capitalized on Barrack’s friendships and access to a candidate who was eventually elected President, high-ranking campaign and government officials, and the American media to advance the policy goals of a foreign government without disclosing their true allegiances,” said acting Assistant Marklesco, Attorney General of the Department of National Security, Ministry of Justice.
Lesko said in a statement: “The actions alleged in the indictment are tantamount to betraying those officials of the United States, including the former president.”
A Trump spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Barrack’s lawyer Matthew Herrington told CNBC that his client was arrested in Los Angeles, “although we cooperated with this investigation from the beginning.”
Barrack will step down as CEO of Colony Capital in 2020. He resigned as executive chairman of the company in April.
Federal prosecutors have been investigating Barak’s work on behalf of the UAE for at least two years.
One of the events that caught their attention was Trump’s speech on energy policy as a presidential candidate in May 2016.
The indictment alleges that Barak “inserted the language of praise of the UAE” in his speech and “sent a draft of the speech to Alshahhi via email for delivery to senior UAE officials.
In the next two years, prosecutors claimed that Barak “sought and received instructions and feedback from senior UAE officials regarding the national press conference that Barak used to promote the interests of the UAE, including talking points.”
The indictment stated: “During this period, Barak has never registered as a lobbyist in the UAE in accordance with the requirements of the Foreign Agent Registration Act.”
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