Former Stone associates indicate willingness to testify against him

Two former associates of Roger Stone indicated Friday that they are willing to testify against him in court.

Jerome Corsi and Randy Credico, who have appeared before the grand jury impaneled by special counsel Robert Mueller and provided documents contradicting Stone’s congressional testimony, signaled they would serve as witnesses if the case goes to trial.

{mosads}Stone, a longtime associate of President Trump who worked briefly on his campaign as an informal adviser, was arrested Friday on one count of obstruction of an official proceeding, five counts of false statements and one count of witness tampering. He is accused of making false statements during his testimony before the House Intelligence Committee, telling lawmakers he did not discuss his alleged back channel to WikiLeaks over email or through text messages.

Conservative conspiracy theorist Corsi told The Hill on Friday that it would be “very hard” for him to comment on whether Stone lied during congressional testimony, saying Stone “may have different perceptions.”

But he said that if Stone’s case goes to trial and he were subpoenaed to appear as a witness, he would likely comply with the order.

“I don’t see how I have any choice but to testify, and I would plan to do so,” Corsi said. “And I plan again to tell the truth.”

Larry Klayman, Corsi’s attorney, said Friday that he couldn’t comment as to whether his client would testify.

Stone has denied the charges against him, saying he will plead not guilty during his arraignment next week in Washington, D.C.

Credico, a former New York radio host, declined to comment directly to The Hill, citing the advice of his attorneys.

His lawyer, Martin R. Stolar, said that if Stone goes to trial, Credico would testify if called as a witness.

Stolar also said the indictment backs up Credico’s statements that he was not Stone’s backchannel to WikiLeaks.

“Randy has made a number of public statements in the past, and the indictment has been completely consistent with whatever Randy has said,” Stolar said.

Stone for months has insisted that Credico was his back channel to WikiLeaks.

Credico, who had been friends with Stone for more than a decade, told The Hill last year that the friendship has ended.

Other testimony and messages provided by both Corsi and Credico to the special counsel’s office indicate Stone sought more information on emails in WikiLeaks’s possession, despite Stone telling congressional investigators that he had not.

Stone’s indictment accuses him of engaging in witness tampering by threatening Credico if he did not make statements that aligned with Stone’s testimony before congressional investigators.

Credico had urged Stone in text messages and emails to amend his testimony before the House Intelligence Committee. Credico was subpoenaed to testify before the committee, but asserted his Fifth Amendment right to not self-incriminate.

In messages exchanged before Credico invoked the Fifth Amendment, Stone called him a “rat” and a “stoolie,” according to court documents.

Stone also said he would “take that dog away from you,” referring to Credico’s dog Bianca, and later wrote, “I am so ready. Let’s get it on. Prepare to die [expletive].”

Stolar told The Hill that his client would not pursue a separate civil case against Stone, citing Friday’s indictment.

Klayman, meanwhile, said Corsi may pursue a lawsuit against Stone and Infowars founder Alex Jones if “they defame us again.”

Stone and Jones went after Corsi in the lead-up to a Washington Post story published this week about payments Corsi received from Infowars, after he stepped down as Washington bureau chief for Infowars.