During the 2016 presidential campaign, Donald Trump wanted to reveal years of secret work that his one-time real estate adviser Felix Sater did for the CIA and FBI because he thought it would result in "mildly positive" press stories that would make him look "patriotic," Sater said in a new interview.. Trump had previously sought to distance himself from Sater even insisting in a . Trump signed a nonbinding "letter of intent" dated October 13, 2015, to proceed with the project. By signing up, you confirm that you are over the age of 16 andagree to receive occasional promotional offers for programs that support The Nations journalism. Have a tip or story idea? Blockbuster: Stunning new allegations further connect Trump to Russian The woman who called herself the wife of accused Sarah Lawrence sex cult leader Larry Ray told a federal jury that she was frightened to leave him in part because of a remark he made about his family. Previously a reporter for Courthouse News, he has appeared as a guest on NewsNation, NBC, MSNBC, CBS's "Inside Edition," BBC, NPR, PBS, Sky News, and other networks. Before in 1998, Sater pleaded guilty to his involvement in a $40 Million stock fraud by the Russian Mafia. At . Trump Seeks Distance From 'Advisor' With Past Ties to Mafia", "The Donald Trump Story You're Not Hearing About", "Felix Sater: The Crook Behind the Trump-Russia 'Peace' Plan", "In Moscow Luxury-Tower Plan, Donald Trump Paired With Developer for Russia's Working Class", "Trump's Would-Be Moscow Partner Faces Homebuyers' Ire", "Felix Sater: The Trump SoHo and Other Projects", "A Back-Channel Plan for Ukraine and Russia, Courtesy of Trump Associates", "Russia can't rent Crimea from Russia, FM Lavrov says", "Felix Sater Is a Lean, Mean Trump-Russia Machine", "Who is Felix Sater? In her confirmation hearing to serve as US Attorney General under President Obama, Lynch confirmed that Sater did in fact work with the FBI and other agenciespresumably the CIAin providing information crucial to national security. Where and how Sater gathered the information that he provided, whether or not it involved contacts with the Russian FSB (the successor to the KGB) and GRU, and whether those agencies themselves established a covert connection with Sater is something that both Mueller and the US intelligence community ought to be looking at today, of course. Donald wanted me to bring deals to him, Sater told New York. Cohen and Felix Sater have known each other for nearly 30 years. Felix Sater a channel to Russia, convicted felon, and associate of Donald Trump provides the perfect window into Trump's suspect business practices and network. Home. A known bootlegger linked to bombings, corruption, torture and killings, Capone was famously brought down during prosecution on a more mundane crime: tax evasion, leading to convictions that put him away in Alcatraz for several years. To submit a correction for our consideration, click here. Drager acknowledged the 53-year-old may have some financial troubles due to the fact that he was involved in an investigation. (Saters first office suite, with his criminal enterprise called State Street Capital, had its offices in a Trump-owned building, 40 Wall Street, in the mid-1990s. tn_author: ['bob-d'], This project was facilitated by Michael Cohen, then an attorney for the Trump Organization, and from January 2016 to May 2017 Trump's personal attorney. It was Saters idea to give a $50 million penthouse to Putin in the Moscow tower. Hes been a major government cooperator and was a witness in the Mueller investigation. Felix Sater | Committee to Investigate Russia At a hearing last month, Drager scolded Felix for not yet having filed his 2018 taxes. }); I mean, Ive seen him a couple of times; I have met him, Trump said, in a deposition in a court case involving Sater in 2013. if( magazine_text_258356 !='' ){ jQuery("#inline_cta_btn_258356 a").attr("href",inline_cta_url_258356); [38], Felix Sater has been described as a career criminal due to his links to organized crime. . Copyright (c) 2023 The Nation Company LLC, By signing up, you confirm that you are over the age of 16 and, agree to receive occasional promotional offers for programs that support. freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ Stay tuned with us. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. And, though Trump has denied that he has any business interests in Russia, even as he was gearing up for the Republican presidential primary race, Cohen and Sater were deep into previously undisclosed talks with Russian partners about constructing a Trump-branded hotel, according to The Washington Post. As we previously mentioned, Felix Sater is a married man. The project was a collaboration between The Trump Organization, Bayrock Group LLC and Tamir Sapir. In so doing, for protection Sater drew on the assistance of his fathers friends in the Genovese crime family. cta_1_check_258356 = true; if( inline_cta_2_button_text_258356 !='' ){ jQuery("#magazine_text_258356").html(magazine_text_258356); You can read our Privacy Policy here. Clair insists that whatever happens in the hearings, Sater cant obfuscate in family court, saying, Unlike the politics in Washington, the divorce court is the crucible of truth., Sater confirmed the divorce to Page Six and said, Viki was a fantastic wife, the most amazing mother and we raised three beautiful daughters together.. inline_cta_2_text_258356 = '

Give a gift subscription today!

Know someone who would like The Nation?

'; According to the reports from CNN, Sater was also asked to visit his kids to Russia by the current president Trump. Terms of Use Trump's Business Partners Allegedly Involved In Human Trafficking [2] Felix and his sister adopted the surname Sater. Its no wonder that Trump, especially now that hes under investigation over his ties to Russia and its meddling in the 2016 election, would respond to questions about Sater by saying: Whos he? He also asserted that he had secured financing for the project through the Russian state-owned VTB Bank, which was under sanctions by the United States government. S o who, exactly, is Felix Sater? Now there are stunning new allegations in federal court documents that this Russian criminal network with worldwide reach hired Felix Sater, one of Trump's closest yet disavowed associates, to hide a fortune stolen in Kazakhstan. var params = The central Asian country was once part of the Soviet Union. In the groundbreaking story Larry Ray and the Stolen Kids of Sarah Lawrence, New York Magazine reported that Ray claimed that the FBI sent him to Russia to lure Sater back to the United States. We've received your submission. We've received your submission. inline_cta_2_font_color_258356 = '#ffffff'; 'https' : 'http'; [60] He was then rescheduled to give closed-door testimony on June 21, 2019. He stands at a good height. targeting:{ inline_cta_text_258356 = '

Donate Now to Power The Nation.

Readers like you make our independent journalism possible.

'; Boy, I have to even think about it.. Throughout his trial, Ray can be heard obsessing about former New York City Police Chief Bernie Kerik, his former friend turned archnemesis. FinCEN Files: Banks Flagged Felix Sater for $100 Million In Suspicious Activity. Well, Felix also finished a project for The Trump Organization of a building construction with a full cost of around $450 Million in a 46-story and 391-unit hotel condominium located at the Spring Street in SoHo. When you open a soda can or bottle, carbon dioxide will begin to come out of the soda and into the air. var cta_2_check_258356 = false; Judge Unseals Files in Case of Trump Associate Felix Sater - The Intercept He is married to his beautiful wife Viktoria Sater. } The former director of the famous international real estate development and investment company Bayrock Group LLC in New York,Felix Sater is widely recognized as an American former mobster and real estate developer. However, the couple has not yet disclosed any information about how they met for the first time. if( magazine_button_bg_color_258356 !='' ){ [27][disputed discuss]. inline_cta_2_bg_color_258356 = '#cc0e0e'; magazine_button_bg_color_258356 = '#dd3333'; Felix Sater: the enigmatic businessman at the heart of the Trump-Russia One of Rays attorneys also asserted this in a court document in 2000, claiming Ray attempted to obtain Saters extradition to the U.S. for prosecution. } } However, Trump has distanced himself from Sater, stating that he barely knew him. Rays defense attorneys suggested that there was a grain of truth to his purported persecution by Kerik. House Intel Committee Witness Accuses Fusion GPS Founder Of Perjury His reporting on the trial of Ghislaine Maxwell was featured on the Starz and Channel 4 documentary "Who Is Ghislaine Maxwell?" inline_cta_font_color_258356 = '#000000'; } inline_cta_bg_color_258356 = '#ffcf0d'; The Kleptocrats' Money-Laundering Middleman Who Did Deals With Trump [15][16], Judge I. Leo Glasser confirmed that Sater helped the U.S. government track down Osama bin Laden as he provided the telephone number of Osama bin Laden. The family emigrated to Israel when Felix was 8 years old to avoid religious persecution in the Soviet Union, and eventually came to the United States, living in Baltimore, Maryland before settling in Brighton Beach, New York in 1974. Russiagate This past February the Times published a blockbuster story by Megan Twohey and Scott Shane recounting an effort by Sater, Cohen, Gen. Mike Flynn, and a Ukrainian politician to put forward a half-cocked Ukrainian peace plan and deliver it, freelance fashion, to the White House. . inline_cta_button_text_258356 = ''; [34][35], In addition to real estate development endeavors, Sater also has started businesses in the fields of philanthropy, investment, retail, and energy. [emailprotected], Law&Crime's managing editor Adam Klasfeld has spent more than a decade on the legal beat. Sater and Al Qaeda 1998-? Update: Sater told Talking Points Memo he knew Cohen through Cohen's wife, Laura . Former Mafia-linked figure describes association with Trump View our current issue cta_2_check_258356 = true; They met in Brighton Beach when Cohen started dating his future wife, Shusterman's daughter, Laura, who Sater says he knew. tn_ptype: 'article', cta_2_check_258356 = true; } [2][9][29] In 1998, Sater was convicted of fraud in connection to a $40 million penny stock pump and dump scheme conducted by the Russian Mafia[9][10] involving his company White Rock Partners. According to Rices New York piece, Sater laundered fraud proceeds through a labyrinthine network of Caribbean shell companies, Israeli and Swiss bank accounts, and contacts in New Yorks Diamond District. In the mid-1990s, New York reports, Sater spent a great deal of time in Moscow, where, according to a friend and business partner, Sal Lauriawho later wrote a book about all of thisWe were dealing with ex-KGB generals and with the elite of Russian society.. Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Laura Drager made the interim award to his ex Viktoria Sater who filed for divorce in March after reviewing his 2018 tax returns.