UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT LED
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA APR 11 2019
Clerk, U.S. District and
Holding a Criminal Term
Bankruptcy Courts
Grand Jury Sworn in on May 3, 2018
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA : CRIMINAL NO.
. :
VIOLATIONS:
GREGORY B. CRAIG,
: Count 1: 18 U.S.C. § 1001(a)(1)
Defendant, : (False Statements Scheme)
Count 2: 22 U.S.C. §§ 612 and 618
(False and Misleading Statements)
INDICTMENT
‘The Grand Jury charges that:
1. Atall times material to this indictment:
Introduction
2.
The defendant, GREGORY B. CRAIG, was an attomey and partner at an
international law firm (“Law Firm”), Immediately before joining the Law Firm and at other points
in his legal career, CRAIG had held positions in the executive branch of the federal government.
3. The Foreign Agents Registration Act (“FARA”), 22 U.S.C. §§ 611-621, was and is
a disclosure statute that requires any person acting as “an agent of a foreign principal” to register
with the Attorney General in connection with certain types of activities, such as political or public
relations efforts on behalf of the foreign principal. Such registrations are made to the U.S.
Department of Justice, National Security Division’s Foreign Agents Registration Act Unit (“FARA
Unit”). It is a crime to knowingly and willfully fail to register, and to make false and misleadingstatements or material omissions in documents submitted to the FARA Unit under the law’s
provisions.
4, The purpose of FARA is to prevent covert influence by foreign principals. Proper
registration under the statute allows the U.S. goverment and the American people to evaluate the
statements and activities of individuals who are serving as agents of foreign principals. Among
other things, a FARA registration reveals the identity of the foreign principal on whose behalf a
registrant performs services, the type of services the registrant provides the foreign principal, and
the source and amount of compensation the registrant receives from the foreign principal.
5. The Government of Ukraine, a country in Eastern Europe, was and is a foreign
principal under FARA.
6. In or about October 2011, the Prosecutor General’s Office of the Government of
Ukraine prosecuted former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko for abusing her official
powers in office. Tymoshenko was convicted and sentenced to seven years in prison. Her
prosecution was widely criticized by Western governments and media as politically motivated and
unfair.
CRAIG and the Law Firm’s Work for Ukraine
7. In or about early 2012, in the face of the intemational criticism regarding
‘Tymoshenko’s trial, Ukraine engaged the Law Firm and CRAIG, as lead partner, to conduct an
independent inquiry into whether, under Western standards of justice, Tymoshenko had received a
fair trial, and to prepare a report based on that inquiry (“Report”). Ukraine planned to deploy the
Report as part of a strategy headed by an American lobbyist (“Lobbyist”) whom Ukraine had
employed to, among other things, improve Ukraine’s international public image. In connectionwith the engagement, and throughout the preparation of the Report, CRAIG coordinated closely
with the Lobbyist.
8. From the outset of the Ukraine project, CRAIG was aware of FARA’s registration
requirements. CRAIG did not want to register as an agent for the Government of Ukraine, however,
at least in part because he believed doing so could prevent him or others at the Law Firm from
taking positions in the federal government in the future. Moreover, as described in more detail
below, registration would have required CRAIG to disclose that a third party had paid the Law Firm
‘more than $4 million for the Report, and that the Law Firm had a parallel engagement with Ukraine
to assist in the prosecution of Tymoshenko on additional charges. These disclosures, as well as the
fact of registration itself, would have undermined the Report and CRAIG’s perceived
independence.
9. Onor about February 13, 2012, Craig emailed a Law Firm partner and co-author
(“Co-Author”) of the Report, writing, “I don’t want to register as a foreign agent under FARA. I
think we don’t have to with this assignment, yes?” CRAIG and other Law Firm attorneys thereafter
exchanged emails discussing the FARA statute.
10. On or about February 20, 2012, CRAIG drafted a retainer agreement for a
“Preliminary Engagement” period during which CRAIG and Co-Author would travel to Kiev,
‘Ukraine and discuss the proposed retention of the Law Firm for the Report. In order to enter into
the Preliminary Engagement, CRAIG required an advance of $150,000. The retainer agreement
for the Preliminary Engagement stated that the “fee for the Engagement itself will be determined
after the Preliminary Engagement has been completed.”
11. Onorabout March 19, 2012, CRAIG postponed the trip to Kiev for the Preliminary
Engagement because the Law Firm had not received the $150,000 advance. When, the following