According to a source, a Russian oligarch made a payment of hundreds of thousands of dollars to Trump’s long-term attorney Michael Cohen after the elections. After this revelation, the team of special counsel Robert Muller investigated the Russian oligarch about the payment. Chairman of Renova Group, Viktor Vekselberg who is close to Russian president Vladimir Putin, was put in the list of sanctioned Russians for election interference by the US president. However, the nature of the relationship between Cohen and Viktor is unclear.
This scrutiny of payment could lead to further trouble for Cohen as his office and house were raided by Federal Investigators last month in Manhattan. The investigation from Vekselberg suggests that Mueller’s team is taking into consideration Cohen-Vekselberg relationship as a part of Russian Meddling in 2016 US elections. Earlier this year, Vekselberg’s jet was landed twice in New York and later FBI enquired the matter as a part of Mueller’s investigation.
Vekselberg was also asked about the funds his US affiliate company paid as a donation to Trump’s election campaign. The lawyer of Stormy Daniels, a playboy model who received $130,000 from Michael Cohen to keep quiet about her affair with the president back in 2016, produced further information in Cohen’s case on Tuesday.
According to the attorney of Daniels, Michael Avenatti, Michael Cohen received a huge amount from US affiliate company after the elections. Avenatti further said that $500,000 was sent into the bank account of a company that was set up by Cohen to pay Daniels. The payment was made from January 2017 to August 2017, said Avenatti.
The documents showing this payment was published by CNN. However, CNN didn’t authenticate the documents. During the investigation, FBI agents asked Vekselberg about the payment his US affiliate company made to Cohen. He was also asked about the $300,000 paid as a political donation by Vekselberg’s cousin Andrew Intrater.
His cousin Andrew Intrater was also investigated by FBI team, according to some sources. Vekselberg was banned by US government to travel to the United States. Later it was also revealed that the payment was made at the same time when Cohen was establishing a legal business. But at the same time, Cohen was working as a lawyer for the president Trump.
When asked about the payment made to Daniels, Trump referred the question to Cohen saying that he was my attorney. When asked about the payment to the attorney of Cohen, he said that his client had seven clients for whom he was acting as a business adviser.
After the investigation, Columbus Nova, the US affiliate company released an official statement in which it was stated that the company was completely owned and operated by the Americans. It was further reported that the company then hired Michael Cohen as the business adviser. Vekselberg did not use Columbus Nova as a channel for making payments to Cohen, reported in the statement. All the claims about the involvement of Vekselberg in paying Cohen are patently false. It was further stated that other than the owner of Columbus Nova, no one was involved in hiring Michael Cohen.
After a couple of days, the general counsel of Comubus Nova Eric Kosta said that he can 100% guarantee that the company is owned by the Americans. Vekselberg, Intrater, and Cohen all were asked to comment on this matter but none of them commented on it.
According to CNN sources, prosecutors are investing the financial document of Michael Cohen including his taxi business and the payment made to Daniels. Last month, a raid was conducted by FBI at Cohen’s house and office in which a dozen of electronic devices was seized by the FBI. Later, the attorney of Cohen said that the raid was made on Mueller’s recommendation.
As stated by the Center for Responsive Politics, Vekselberg’s cousin Andrew Intrater supported Trump generously as he gave $29,600 to the Republican National Committee, $35,000 as a victory fund to Trump and $250,000 as an inauguration fund to the US president.
Vekselberg is a point of interest to the investigators due to his close relationship with Russia. Back in 2015, Vekselberg attended a dinner in Moscow in which the former national security adviser of Trump Michael Flynn sat beside the Russian president Putin, as reported by CNN.