Paul Manafort Spends First Night In Virginia Jail
WARSAW, V.A. (CBSNewYork) – President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman Paul Manafort woke up Saturday in a Warsaw, Virginia jail, where he will spend many days to come.
A federal judge revoked his bail Friday after a grand jury found sufficient probably cause that he was trying to tamper with witnesses.
Manafort and his Russian business partner allegedly asked European contacts to testify that their lobbying work did not take place in the United States, CBS News' Kenneth Craig reports.
He will now remain in jail until his trial on dozens of charges, including financial fraud, money laundering and making false statements.
More: Trump Ex-Campaign Chair Paul Manafort Going To Jail
Judge Amy Berman Jackson ruled that jail was her only choice, saying, "This is not middle school. I can't take away his cellphone. I have no appetite for this."
Trump distanced himself a bit from the man who headed his campaign for almost five months.
"You know, Paul Manafort worked for me for a very short period of time," he said.
But the president also stuck up for him, suggesting that Manafort's alleged crimes are too old to prosecute.
"They've gone back 12 years to find things about somebody, and I don't think it's right," he said.
On Friday evening, Trump also tweeted that the judge's decision to put Manafort in jail was a "tough sentence" and added "didn't know Manafort was the head of the Mob."
Sources tell CBS News that Manafort is banking on a presidential pardon in order to stay out of jail for the rest of his life.
His trial is scheduled to start in September.