A former associate of Paul Manafort, Sam Patten, was charged Friday with failing to register in the US as a foreign agent for his work lobbying on behalf of a Ukrainian political party. US Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s office referred the case to the US Attorney in the District of Columbia, according to William Miller, a spokesman for US Attorney Jessie Liu. From 2014 until now, Patten worked with a Russian national on lobbying and political consulting services, including on behalf of a Ukrainian oligarch and a Ukrainian political party, according to a document filed by the U.S. in federal court in Washington. As part of his lobbying work, he violated the Foreign Agents Registration Act, the US said. The charge is a felony and carries a maximum prison sentence of five years, Miller said. Because it’s a pending case, the US Attorney declined to comment further.
