Paul Manafort to be sentenced in 1st of 2 federal criminal cases

U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis III will sentence Paul Manafort, President Trump's former campaign chair, on Thursday afternoon in one of two cases brought against him by Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office. Ellis could sentence Manafort, 69, to up to 24 years in prison for his tax and bank fraud convictions, though his lawyers are asking for closer to five years and most observers expect less than 20 years.

Manafort will be sentenced in the second case, in Washington, D.C,. on March 13. His lawyers have argued for leniency due to health problems he has suffered in prison, among other reasons, but prosecutors say the health claims haven't withstood scrutiny and wouldn't be a legitimate reason for Manafort to escape the consequences of his crimes in any case.

Manafort is the only one of the 34 people Mueller has charged to have gone to trial; all the others have pleaded guilty or are still fighting the charges. Mueller is expected to wrap up his investigation within weeks, and thanks to roughly $26.7 million Manafort has forfeited in his plea agreement, it appears the special counsel's investigation might actually bring in more money than it spent.

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