Cohen released from federal prison to home confinement due to coronavirus concerns

President Trump’s former personal attorney Michael Cohen was released from federal prison to home confinement Thursday because of the Justice Department’s efforts to reduce the number of inmates in prisons amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Cohen confirmed his release in a tweet, saying he is “so glad to be home and back with my family.”

“There is so much I want to say and intend to say. But now is not the right time,” he posted. “Soon. Thank you to all my friends and supporters.”

I am so glad to be home and back with my family. There is so much I want to say and intend to say. But now is not the right time. Soon. Thank you to all my friends and supporters.

— Michael Cohen (@MichaelCohen212) May 21, 2020

Federal Bureau of Prisons spokeswoman Sue Allison confirmed to The Hill that Cohen left New York’s FCI Otisville Thursday morning “on furlough pending processing for home confinement.”

Cohen’s lawyer Jeffrey Levine said he spoke to the president’s former attorney at 9 a.m. and will likely issue a statement after speaking with him more, The Washington Post reported. 

Trump’s former “fixer” became involved in several federal investigations and cooperated with investigators who were looking into Trump. The attorney ended up testifying before Congress about the president’s alleged wrongdoings last year.

Cohen pleaded guilty in 2018 to two different criminal cases: one involving campaign finance violations with payments to women who allegedly had affairs with Trump before the 2016 election and the other involving lying to Congress about a Russian real estate project that Trump was working on while running for president.

Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison starting in May 2019. He attempted to apply for early release in March because of the coronavirus pandemic but was rejected. 

However, Attorney General William Barr announced that prison officials could release prisoners without judicial approval in an effort to reduce the prison populations, which gave Cohen another chance to be released. Fourteen inmates and seven workers had tested positive at the prison where Cohen was kept. 

CNN reported on Wednesday that Cohen was expected to be released later in the week.

Cohen is not the only high-profile prisoner to be sent to home confinement during the coronavirus pandemic, as Michael Avenatti, the former attorney for adult-film star Stormy Daniels, and former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort were also released.

Updated: 4:15 p.m.