Reza Zarrab, gold trader, might be Mueller's next George Papadopolous -- a guy we never heard of

who might be flipping against Michael Flynn.

Last week we learned that Mueller might have a cooperating witness in a case against Flynn, a gold trader named Reza Zarrab. The Daily Beast reported he had been released from a facility where they had been holding him pending his money-laundering trial, and that he was believed to be cooperating with the Mueller investigation. The NYTimes reported that there were some signs that Zarrab may have pleaded guilty.

Now we hear that Turkey is targeting Preet Bharara and Acting DA Joon Kim, the US prosecutors who have been targeting Zarrab and a Turkish banker in the money-laundering trial.

So Mueller, according to reports, may have gotten Zarrab to flip against Flynn and/or others, in a money-laundering case that originated in NY under Preet Bharara. And in response Turkey is going after the NY A.G.'s, saying that their collection of evidence violated international and domestic law.

This situation seems like it's heating up quickly. Zarrab's trial is supposed to start on Monday.


https://apnews.com/4d00b1c8faa143178dad4f54d8981fb5

ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkish prosecutors launched an investigation Saturday of two United States prosecutors involved in putting a Turkish-Iranian businessman on trial for allegedly violating U.S. sanctions against Iran, according to Turkey’s official news agency.

The Istanbul prosecutor’s office said it is investigating Preet Bharara, the former U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Bharara’s successor, Acting U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim.

A statement from the Istanbul prosecutor’s office claimed that the sources of the documents and wiretaps being used as evidence in the U.S. case against gold trader Reza Zarrab were unknown and violated international and domestic laws.

https://www.cnbc.com/2017/11/16/a-turkish-businessman-may-be-cooperating-with-flynn-investigation.html

Special Counsel Robert Mueller has expressed interest in a December 2016 meeting between Flynn and representatives of the Turkish government, in which Flynn was reportedly offered $15 million to deliver a political rival of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan from the United States to Turkey. Flynn denies the allegations and his attorney has called them "outrageous."

According to NBC News, citing three sources, the probe is also investigating whether Flynn discussed ways to free Reza Zarrab, a wealthy gold trader with dual Iranian and Turkish citizenship and personal ties to Erdogan. Zarrab was indicted in 2015 in federal court for allegedly circumventing U.S. sanctions on the Iranian regime by facilitating millions of dollars worth of unlawful transactions. He was set to go on trial in New York later this month.

The Daily Beast reported Thursday that Zarrab was removed from the Metropolitan Correctional Center, a federal facility in New York City, though a spokesperson for the U.S. attorney's office said Zarrab remained in federal custody.

The Bureau of Prisons inmate locator shows that Zarrab was released Nov. 8, three days after NBC News reported that the special counsel had enough evidence to bring charges against Flynn.


https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/31/nyregion/zarrab-turkish-gold-trader.html?_r=0

But in court papers filed on Monday, lawyers for Mr. Zarrab’s co-defendant, a Turkish banker named Mehmet Hakan Atilla, wrote that Mr. Zarrab “has essentially not participated in the case” since September, and it seemed “likely that Mr. Atilla will be the only defendant appearing at trial.”

There were other telling signs of inaction: At midnight on Monday, Mr. Zarrab’s lawyers allowed a deadline to pass without filing court papers that would have allowed him to challenge the admissibility of key government evidence against him.

The lawyers also did not submit proposed jury instructions or questions to be asked of prospective jurors when they are selected for the trial, which is scheduled to begin on Nov. 27.

And there was no indication Mr. Zarrab had joined in court filings made by Mr. Atilla’s lawyers, who on Monday filed challenges to the government’s evidence and offered jury-related proposals.

SNIP

“One would not expect a lawyer going to trial to give up these chances to shape the way his client’s case gets presented to the jury,” said Daniel C. Richman, a former federal prosecutor who is now a law professor at Columbia University.