George Nader, linked to Mueller probe, pleads guilty to child sex charges. Who is he?

George Nader, a businessman who later played a key role in the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, has pleaded guilty to child sex charges.

Nader was accused of bringing a 14-year-old boy to the United States for sex and of possessing child pornography, as first reported by Courthouse News Service. He entered his plea Monday, and prosecutors recommended he serve a minimum of 10 years in federal prison, according to the Washington Post.

Who is George Nader?

The Lebanese-American businessman served as an political adviser in various circumstances before his arrest in January 2018.

CNN reported he worked with President George H.W. Bush to release hostages in Lebanon, and also with President Bill Clinton to reach a peace deal between Israel and Syria. Nader later served as an adviser for Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

According to grand jury testimony, Nader met with President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, then Trump-adviser Steve Bannon and the UAE’s crown prince of Abu Dhabi at Trump Tower in New York in December 2016. The goal of the meeting was to push the Trump administration to take a negative stance on Qatar, which is an enemy of the UAE, according to a report by the Associated Press.

Nader appeared at a meeting a month later with former Blackwater head Erik Prince, Russian banker Kirill Dmitriev and the UAE’s crown prince. Then in 2017, Nader wired $2.5 million to Trump fundraiser Elliott Broidy, according to the Associated Press.

Nader was stopped by FBI agents at Dulles International Airport in 2018 as part of an investigation into his contacts with Trump’s team and Russian officials. He later became a witness during Robert Mueller’s investigation, and his name appeared more than 100 times in Mueller’s report.

History of child sex abuse

Nader was previously convicted in the Czech Republic of 10 cases of sexually abusing minors and sentenced to one year in prison in 2003. He also pleaded guilty to a charge of transporting child pornography in Virginia in 1991.

His most recent charges came after a search warrant in connection with the Mueller investigation uncovered images of child pornography on his phone.

Sentencing for Nader is scheduled for April 10. His attorneys have not responded to a request for comment.