Trump aide Thomas Barrack pleads not guilty to illegal lobbying charges

Thomas Barrack, who chaired former President Donald Trump’s inaugural committee, and a co-defendant pleaded not guilty Monday to illegal lobbying charges related to their alleged attempts to advance the interests of the United Arab Emirates with the Trump campaign and the former president's administration.

Barrack, 74, and Matthew Grimes, 27, entered their pleas in a Brooklyn, N.Y., federal court following their arrests last week.The former Trump aide was released Friday on a $250 million bond, while Grimes was freed on a $5 million bond. A third defendant in the case, UAE national Rashid Sultan Rashid Al Malik Alshahhi, 43, remains at large. 

A longtime Trump ally, Barrack is the latest in a bevy of former Trump aides who have faced criminal charges, including Paul Manafort, Trump's former campaign chairman; Michael Flynn, Trump's former national security adviser; Steve Bannon, Trump's former chief strategist; Michael Cohen, a former personal attorney; and Allen Weisselberg, the Trump Organization's chief financial officer, who was accused earlier this month of tax fraud. 

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