George Nader in 1999. Photo: Ron Sachs/CNP/Getty Images
George Nader, who served as a go-between for President Trump's transition team and Russian and Middle East officials in 2016 and 2017, was charged in a Virginia federal court on Friday with sex trafficking, child pornography and obscenity, as first reported by The Daily Beast.
Why it matters: Today's indictment adds additional child pornography incidents to last month's charges, as well as new counts of sex trafficking and obscenity. From Axios' Zach Basu: Nader was a key witness in special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation and is known to have set up a now-infamous meeting in the Seychelles between Trump associate Erik Prince and a Russian official with close ties to the Kremlin. He has presented himself as close to the United Arab Emirates’ de-facto ruler, Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed, and was convicted of transporting child porn 28 years ago. Today's indictment adds additional child pornography to last month's charges, as well as new counts of sex trafficking and obscenity.
- Nader pleaded not guilty to the additional charges and is set to be held without bail until his trial begins on September 30, per the Washington Post's Rachel Weiner.
Go deeper: Read more about Nader in a searchable version of the Mueller report.