Dutch lawyer deported after serving prison time in Mueller's Russia probe

Christal Hayes | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Lawyer Sentenced in Russia Probe Heads to Court The first person to be sentenced in Robert Mueller's investigation appeared before a federal judge on Tuesday. Alex van der Zwaan pleaded guilty in February to lying to the FBI about his interactions with former Trump campaign aide Rick Gates. (April 3)

Alex Van Der Zwaan, a Dutch lawyer and the only person to serve prison time in Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation, was deported and arrived back in the Netherlands Tuesday, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Van Der Zwaan, the son-in-law of Russian oligarch German Khan, pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his work with two of President Trump's former campaign aides. He served 30 days in a low-security prison in Allenwood, Pennsylvania.

He was released from prison on Monday and handed over to ICE custody, then he was removed from the U.S. He arrived Tuesday in the Netherlands, where he is a citizen, and was handed over to Dutch authorities, ICE said in a statement to USA TODAY.

Van Der Zwaan pleaded guilty in February and cooperated with investigators. While several others have been indicted and pleaded guilty in Mueller's ongoing probe examining Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election, Van Der Zwaan is the first and, so far, only person to serve any prison time.

In his plea, Van Der Zwaan admitted to deleting emails and lying to prosecutors about a conversation with Rick Gates, a former Trump aide, about work they'd done for a Ukrainian political party, which was aligned with Russia.

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Much of the allegations against him centered on his work in 2012 on a report supporting the prosecution of a chief political rival to then-president of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovych.

Prosecutors say Paul Manafort, Trump's former campaign chairman, and Gates helped pay for the report.

Both were accused of secretly working on behalf of pro-Russian factions in Ukraine, then laundering millions of dollars in profits through foreign bank accounts. Prosecutors charged that the men sought to cover up their work even while they held senior roles in Trump’s campaign.

Gates pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy and lying to the FBI while Manafort continues to battle the allegations.