A federal prosecutor who had asked for a heavy sentence against Roger Stone, a relative of Donald Trump, withdrew from the case Tuesday after the intervention of the American president, who complained of the severity of the sentence initially required against Mr. Stone. Monday, in their sentencing recommendations sent to a federal judge, prosecutors asked for between 7 and 9 years in prison against this 67-year-old political consultant, loyal to the Republican president.
But during the night, the latter reacted by denouncing in a tweet a " very unfair situation " and a " miscarriage of justice ". Roger Stone was found guilty in November of lying to Congress in connection with the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 American election. He will face sentence on February 20.
In a motion sent to the judge on Tuesday, prosecutor Aaron Zelinsky, one of the members of the special prosecutor's team Robert Mueller, who investigated the Russian investigation, announced his withdrawal from the case, without specifying the reason. The move follows revelations from the American press that the Justice Department should intervene on Tuesday to demand a lenient sentence against Mr. Stone.
" The ministry finds the recommendations extreme, excessive and disproportionate, " a senior ministry official said on condition of anonymity. The Justice Department said the move was made before Donald Trump's tweet and without consulting the White House, but the Democratic opposition reacted by denouncing a possible " abuse of power ".
" If the information is correct, the Department of Justice and Minister Bill Barr are ready to override the advice of career prosecutors (...) after a midnight tweet from the president attacking the proposed length of sentence ", a Adam Schiff, the Democrat who led the prosecution team in President Trump’s removal from office in the Senate, said in a statement.
Roger Stone is among the six members of the entourage, more or less close, of Donald Trump to have been charged or sentenced in the wake of the Russian investigation, which poisoned the first half of the mandate of the republican billionaire.