2016 ELECTION/LEGAL/ROBERT MUELLER/RUSSIA: “An attorney who is the son-in-law of one of Russia’s richest men pleaded guilty Tuesday [2-20-18] to lying to Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigators as Mr. Mueller’s team continued to aggressively pursue its wide-ranging probe into Russia’s meddling in the 2016 election.
Alex van der Zwaan, a Dutch national and a former associate in London at the law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, admitted he lied about his contact with Richard Gates, a former adviser to President Donald Trump, in a November interview about his work on a project for the Ukrainian government.
Mr. van der Zwaan told investigators his last contact with Mr. Gates had been in mid-August, when in fact he had discussed the Ukraine work with Mr. Gates in September, including through an encrypted app, special counsel prosecutor Andrew Weissmann said in a federal courtroom in Washington.
Mr. van der Zwaan also admitted he deleted emails sought by investigators…
The Skadden law firm said in a statement it had terminated Mr. van der Zwaan last year and ‘has been cooperating with authorities in connection with this matter.’ A lawyer for Mr. Gates declined to comment.”
-Aruna Viswanatha and Del Quentin Wilber, “Associate of Gates Pleads Guilty to Lying to Mueller Team,” The Wall Street Journal online, Feb. 20, 2018 06:19pm