One of the three men special counsel Robert Mueller has charged with federal crimes in the Russia investigation was the head of a D.C. commercial real estate office. That is, until the indictments were announced Monday.
Rick Gates has been fired from his position with Tom Barrack's global real estate management firm Colony NorthStar, where he had worked since March after serving on President Donald Trump's campaign and transition team, Bloomberg reports.
On Monday morning, Gates was taken into federal custody alongside former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort. They pleaded not guilty and were placed under house arrest.
Gates, who was charged with 12 counts from money laundering to tax fraud to illegal foreign lobbying, had been director of Colony NorthStar's D.C. office, the Washington Post reported.
A longtime friend of Trump, Barrack chaired the president's inauguration committee. He met Gates during the campaign and hired him to work on the inauguration. After the president was sworn in, Barrack hired Gates at his firm to help with investment opportunities that may arise from new laws or regulations.
Colony NorthStar is one of the world's five largest real estate management firms with $58M of assets under its belt following the merger of Colony Capital and NorthStar Asset Management Group that closed in January.
