WASHINGTON • United States President Donald Trump on Wednesday pardoned his former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who had pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI during the investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election.
Mr Trump's pardon, which could be the first of several after he lost the presidential election to Democrat Joe Biden, drew condemnation from Democrats and other critics.
A retired army general, Mr Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to the Federal Bureau of Investigation about interactions he had with Russia's ambassador to the US in the weeks leading up to Mr Trump's inauguration in January 2017.
He has since sought to withdraw the plea, arguing that prosecutors violated his rights and duped him into a plea agreement. His sentencing has been deferred several times.
"It is my great honour to announce that General Michael T. Flynn has been granted a full pardon. Congratulations to #GenFlynn and his wonderful family, I know you will now have a truly fantastic Thanksgiving!" Mr Trump wrote on Twitter.
Mr Flynn's attorney Sidney Powell, who told a court in September that she personally asked Mr Trump not to pardon her client, said the pardon was "bittersweet" because Mr Flynn was innocent.
Mr Trump's move marked the highest-profile pardon he has granted since he took office.
Among others, the Republican President has pardoned army personnel accused of war crimes in Afghanistan and Mr Joe Arpaio, a former Arizona sheriff and hardliner against illegal immigration.
"This pardon is undeserved, unprincipled, and one more stain on President Trump's rapidly diminishing legacy," House of Representatives Judiciary Committee chairman Jerry Nadler said.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called it "an act of grave corruption and a brazen abuse of power."
Mr Flynn served as Mr Trump's first national security adviser but the President fired him in early 2017 after only 24 days, as a controversy broke over the former general's contacts with then Russian Ambassador Sergei Kislyak.
Mr Flynn was one of several former Trump aides to plead guilty or be convicted at trial in former special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Moscow's interference in the 2016 US election to boost Mr Trump's candidacy. Russia denied meddling.
In May, Attorney-General William Barr stunned many in the legal community by ordering prosecutors to have the case dropped, a decision that came after Mr Trump repeatedly complained that Mr Flynn was being treated unfairly.
Mr Flynn and the Trump administration said US District Judge Emmet Sullivan, who presided over the case, was required by law to grant the request for dismissal.
An appeals court in August denied Mr Flynn's request to order the judge to end the case.
"The President has pardoned General Flynn because he should never have been prosecuted," the White House said. "In fact, the Department of Justice has firmly concluded that the charges against General Flynn should be dropped. This full pardon achieves that objective, finally bringing to an end the relentless, partisan pursuit of an innocent man."
REUTERS
