Washington, D.C. – Michael Cohen, who for years served as the personal counsel to United States President Donald Trump, will be released from federal prison on Thursday and expected to serve the remainder of his sentence at home, a person familiar with the case told The Associated Press. .
Cohen is serving a sentence at the Otisville Federal Prison in New York after pleading guilty to numerous charges, including electoral financial fraud and lying to Congress.
The lawyer will be released provisionally with the expectation that he will be placed under house arrest to finish his sentence, added the source, who spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to discuss the matter in public. Cohen, 53, entered the jail last May and his release was expected in November 2021.
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Activists and congressional leaders pressured the Justice Department for weeks to release prisoners at risk from a possible coronavirus outbreak, alleging that it was nearly impossible to comply with the recommendation to keep a safe distance of 1.8 meters (6 feet). .
In March and April, Attorney General William Barr ordered the Bureau of Prisons to increase the use of house arrest and expedite the release of high risk inmates who could benefit from the measure, starting with three centers identified as hot spots. Otisville is not one of them.
Cohen was informed last month that he would be released from prison to serve the remainder of his three-year sentence at his home in response to concerns about the pandemic. The lawyer told his partners that he expected his release by the beginning of this month.
