Trump Longtime Ally Stone Arrested In U.S. Special Counsel Probe

(Reuters) Nathan Layne and Susan Heavey Jan. 25 2019 6:41 A.M. NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trumps longtime ally Roger Stone was arrested on Friday on charges of obstruction witness tampering and making false statements related to the release of stolen Democratic Party emails during the 2016 presidential campaign. Stone an adviser to Trump in his unorthodox bid for the White House was arrested in the predawn darkness on Friday and scheduled to appear at the federal courthouse in Fort Lauderdale Florida at 11 a.m. EST (1600 GMT). The indictment ends months of speculation that Stone would be charged as part of Special Counsel Robert Muellers probe into Russias alleged interference in the 2016 campaign to help Trump defeat Hillary Clinton. Stone was charged with seven criminal counts accusing him of lying to Congress about his public statements and communications with others suggesting he may have had advance knowledge of plans by Wikileaks to release hacked emails.