Bijan Kian
President Donald Trump's former national security adviser Michael Flynn "certainly" will testify against his ex-lobbying partner Bijan Kian at a trial this summer, a Virginia-based federal prosecutor said in court Thursday.
The assertion comes amid a week of turmoil for Flynn, after he fired the lawyers who advised him on foreign lobbying issues and helped him cut a plea deal with special counsel Robert Mueller. He hired a bevy of new attorneys this week. Two came to the federal court hearing in Northern Virginia on Thursday to watch the arguments about Kian's case – which often turned to discussion of Flynn.
Speculation has mounted this week over whether Flynn will continue to help prosecutors, given one of his new attorney's criticisms of the Mueller investigation and willingness to share conspiracies about the Justice Department.
But nothing seemed to have changed Thursday.
There will "certainly be testimony from Flynn" at the Kian trial in July, prosecutor James Gillis said in court, making clear that Flynn is still cooperating under the plea deal he agreed to in the Mueller investigation. Previously, court filings revealed that he started helping with the Kian prosecution in mid-2018, which helped to earn him a glowing sentencing recommendation for little to no jail time from Mueller's team.
Flynn asked to delay his sentencing before a federal judge in Washington last December after the judge still balked at his crime of lying to the FBI. Lawyers involved in the case told the court Flynn may be able to show the judge later this year how helpful he will be to the prosecutors in the case against Kian.
Kian, an Iranian-American lobbyist who also goes by Bijan Rafiekian, was charged with conspiracy for working for Turkey to influence American politicians. He did this, allegedly, while he and Flynn co-owned the Flynn Intel Group and relied on the company for financial transfers in the scheme. He pleaded not guilty, and the trial is set for July.
Another conspirator, Kamil Alptekin, who also uses the first name Ekim and lives in Turkey, was charged and has not entered a plea in federal court. He too had attorneys at the hearing on Thursday.
Flynn was not charged in the case, but admitted to making false statements on federal lobbying disclosures about the work for Turkey.
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https://www.cnn.com/2019/06/13/politics/michael-flynn-lobbying-partner-bijan-kian-testimony/index.html