Michael Cohen Back in Federal Prison Because of His Trump Book

The former fixer was taken back into custody Thursday

Former Trump attorney Michael Cohen
Michael Cohen is headed back to prison.
Mark Wilson/Getty Images

After being released early from his cushy prison back in May due to coronavirus concerns, former Trump lawyer and “fixer” Michael Cohen is reportedly back behind bars after violating the terms of his release.

“Today, Michael Cohen refused the conditions of his home confinement and as a result, has been returned” to a federal facility, the Bureau of Prisons said in a statement on Thursday. The reasons were initially unclear, but according to The New York Times, “… probation officers asked [Cohen] to sign a document that would have barred him from speaking to reporters or publishing a book during the rest of his sentence, his legal adviser said.” Two hours later, he was taken back into custody.

The book in question is, naturally, about President Donald Trump. A week ago, Cohen tweeted that he is close to completing his tell-all and hopes to release it in September. The publication would add to the growing list of hardcover bombshells about the president being published in the run-up to the 2020 election. That is, if this snag doesn’t stop it.

Cohen, who pled guilty to campaign finance violations and other crimes back in 2018, was in the middle of serving a three-year prison sentence at a minimum-security prison in Otisville, N.Y. before he was furloughed. He was originally slated to be released in November of 2021, but he was freed on furlough thanks to coronavirus concerns on May 20.

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