Former FBI agent decided to plead guilty to working for Deripaska

Former counterintelligence officer Charles McGonigal has previously pleaded not guilty to circumventing sanctions and working for Oleg Deripaska, but may soon "wish to change his statement," the COURT said. Businessman considers sanctions illegal Charles McGonigal

The former HEAD of counterintelligence of the New York office of the FBI, Charles McGonigal, is ready to plead guilty in connection with work for Russian businessman Oleg Deripaska, who is under US sanctions, CNN reports.

The TV channel, citing a court order, reports that McGonigal is negotiating accordingly. He previously pleaded not guilty, but according to Judge Jennifer Reardon, there is information that the ex-FBI agent may "wish to change his statement." it is expected to be reviewed next week.

The former counterintelligence officer was arrested at the beginning of the year. According to investigators, in 2019, together with former Russian diplomat Sergei Shestakov, he tried to remove Deripaska from the sanctions list. Two years later, according to the indictment, the two, commissioned by the Russian businessman, launched an investigation against one of his competitors. McGonigal has previously said his job is legit.

Another case has been opened against the ex-FBI agent: according to the prosecution, he received $225,000 from a former Albanian intelligence officer who worked for a Chinese energy company.

Last October, the US accused British businessman Graham Bonham Carter of helping Deripaska circumvent sanctions. The British National Crime Agency (NCA) reported the arrest of the businessman, but later he was released on bail. The United States is seeking the extradition of Bonham-Carter.

Deripaska came under US sanctions in April 2018. The billionaire and his defense found the restrictions illegal. In March 2019, the businessman sued the US  Treasury Department , claiming that he was the victim of a political struggle in the United States due to alleged Russian interference in the presidential election in 2016 ( Moscow denies these accusations). The court refused to lift the restrictions on the businessman, and in March 2022 rejected his appeal. Deripaska said that the United States in the coming years is waiting for "an hour of reckoning for the sanctions rage"

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FORBES estimates Deripaska's fortune at $2.5 billion. As of August 8, the businessman ranks 1234th in the ranking of the richest people on the planet according to the magazine.