The lawyer for former U.S. national security adviser Michael Flynn on Friday labelled as "outrageous" and "false" media reports suggesting his client may have been involved in an alleged plan to seize an Islamic preacher and deliver him to Turkey in exchange for millions of dollars, Reuters reported.
The rare statement from lawyer Robert Kelner came after the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that Special Counsel Robert Mueller was investigating an alleged proposal under which Flynn and his son would receive up to $15 million for seizing Fethullah Gülen from his U.S. home and delivering him to the Turkish government.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's former ally Fethullah Gülen was one of the masterminds of the failed coup in July 2016. The Turkish government wants him extradited to Turkey.
NBC also reported on Friday about an alleged December 2016 meeting, saying Mueller's team was investigating whether Flynn met with senior Turkish officials in the weeks before President Donald Trump's January 2017 inauguration about a possible quid pro quo in which Flynn would be paid to do the bidding of Turkey's government while in office. NBC cited multiple people familiar with the probe.
"Out of respect for the process of the various investigations regarding the 2016 campaign, we have intentionally avoided responding to every rumour or allegation raised in the media," Kelner said in an emailed statement.
"But today's news cycle has brought allegations about General Flynn, ranging from kidnapping to bribery, that are so outrageous and prejudicial that we are making an exception to our usual rule: they are false," Kelner was quoted as saying by Reuters
The Journal reported that FBI agents asked at least four people about a December meeting in New York where Flynn and Turkish government representatives discussed removing Gulen, citing people with knowledge of the FBI's inquiries.
The group also discussed how to set free a Turkish-Iranian gold trader, Reza Zarrab. Zarrab is in prison in the United States on federal charges that he helped Iran skirt U.S. sanctions, NBC said.
