Paul Manafort To Be Jailed At Rikers Island, Reports Say

NEW YORK — Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort will be moved to Rikers Island as early as this week as he faces mortgage fraud charges in Manhattan, news reports say.

U.S. prison officials agreed to transfer Manafort from a federal Pennsylvania lockup to the notorious New York City jail complex ahead of his arraignment on 16 state charges brought by the Manhattan District Attorney's Office, The New York Times reported Tuesday.

Manafort — who has been convicted of federal conspiracy and fraud charges — will be locked up in solitary confinement for his own safety, according to Fox News, which first reported on the move. He will reportedly be brought to Rikers as early as Thursday.

Manhattan DA Cyrus Vance Jr. accused Manafort in March of falsifying business records to rake in millions of dollars illegally through a yearlong scheme. Vance announced the indictment less than an hour after Manafort was sentenced to 43 additional months in prison.

The state charges mean Manafort could face prison time even if President Donald Trump pardons him of the federal crimes for which he's been separately convicted.

The city's Department of Correction, which oversees Rikers Island, said it could not confirm that Manafort would be coming into its custody. The Manhattan DA's office declined to comment.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons said that if Manafort were to be transferred, his destination could not be released until after his arrival. Manafort is currently behind bars at Federal Correctional Institution Loretto in Loretto, Pennsylvania.