'I Will Plead Not Guilty': Former Trump Adviser Roger Stone On Indictment In Mueller Probe
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FORT LAUDERDALE (CBSMiami) – "I will plead not guilty to these charges. I will defeat them in court." Those are the words from former Trump adviser Roger Stone as he addressed the media Friday following his arrest in the special counsel's Russia probe.
"After a two year inquisition the charges today relate in no way to collusion, WikiLeaks collaboration, or any other illegal action in connection to the 2016 campaign," Stone told a crowd of reporters and protesters on the steps of the federal courthouse in Fort Lauderdale.
"I am falsely accused of making false statements during my testimony to the House intelligence committee. That is incorrect, any error I made in my testimony would be immaterial and without intent," he said.
Stone is charged with witness tampering, obstruction and lying to Congress.
FBI agents arrested Stone during a pre-dawn raid at his Fort Lauderdale home, something he says wasn't necessary.
WATCH ROGER STONE ADDRESS MEDIA FOLLOWING ARREST AND BOND HEARING
"At the crack of dawn, 29 FBI agents arrived at my home with 17 vehicles with lights flashing when they could have simply contacted my attorney's and I would have been more than willing to surrender voluntarily," he explained. "They terrorized my wife, my dogs. I was taken to the FBI facility but I must say the FBI agents were extraordinarly courteous."
Stone was released on a $250,000 bond and his case will be transferred to Washington D.C.
"I will plead not guilty to these charges. I will defeat them in court," he stated.
Stone believes his arrest is "politically motivated."
"I am disturbed by the political motivations of the prosecutors. As I have said previously, there is no circumstance whatsoever under which I will bear false witness against the President nor will I make up lies to ease the pressure on myself. I look forward to being fully and completely vindicated."
Stone was indicted on charges that he lied to the House intelligence panel about conversations he had about the website WikiLeaks and that he obstructed Robert Mueller's probe.
The indictment says Trump campaign associates sought disclosure of emails the U.S. says were hacked by Russia. It says Stone told campaign officials he had information indicating WikiLeaks had obtained documents damaging to Hillary Clinton's campaign.
Stone is the sixth Trump associate charged in special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into the Trump campaign and possible coordination with Russian efforts to sway the 2016 election.
