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- A federal judge set financier and former Trump ally Tom Barrack's bond at $250 million.
- Barrack is charged with illegal foreign lobbying, making false statements, and obstruction.
- Barrack must wear an ankle bracelet, observe a curfew, and not spend more than $50,000 at a time.
- See more stories on Insider's business page.
A federal judge set the bond for Tom Barrack, a prominent financier and former ally of former President Donald Trump, at $250 million during a Friday hearing.
US Magistrate Judge Patricia Donahue stipulated that Barrack must wear an ankle bracelet and cannot spend more than $50,000 at a time as conditions of this bond. The hearing follows Barrack's Tuesday arrest by federal agents in California.
-Christina Wilkie (@christinawilkie) July 23, 2021
Earlier this week, federal prosecutors charged Barrack and two co-defendants, Matthew Grimes and Rashid Sultan Rashid Al Malik Alshahhi, with one count of acting as an unregistered foreign agent and one count of conspiring to act as an unregistered foreign agent each.
Barrack was also charged with one count of obstruction of justice and four counts of lying to the FBI.
Barrack and Matthew Grimes are set to appear in federal court in Brooklyn, where they are charged, to enter their pleas at noon on Monday.
"Mr. Barrack has made himself voluntarily available to investigators from the outset," a representative for Barrack told Insider upon his arrest. "He is not guilty and will be pleading not guilty."
Barrack made his name as a successful commercial real estate investor and executive chairman of Colony Capital. He first became friends with Trump through the real estate business in the mid-1980s, and went on to serve as the chairman of Trump's 2017 inaugural committee. He is the eighth former official in the Trump 2016 presidential campaign, transition, and administration to be indicted on federal charges.
Barrack is accused of violations of the Foreign Agents Registration Act, or FARA, by lobbying on behalf of the United Arab Emirates. Prosecutors say Barrack and the co-defendants used Barrack's high-level connections to heavily lobby on behalf of the UAE without properly registering themselves as foreign agents with the Department of Justice.
"The defendants repeatedly capitalized on Barrack's friendships and access to a candidate who was eventually elected President, high-ranking campaign and government officials, and the American media to advance the policy goals of a foreign government without disclosing their true allegiances," Acting Assistant Attorney General Mark Lesko of the DOJ's National Security Division said in a news release.
Alshahhi, a UAE national, is currently at large and has not yet appeared in court.