President Trump pardons 15 people, including two convicted for Russia probe

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump granted a full pardon to George Papadopoulos, his former campaign aide who pleaded guilty after Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 Presidential Election.

“The defendant’s crime was serious and caused damage to the government’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election,” according to a sentencing recommendation memo from U.S. Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

Papadopoulos served 12 days of a 14-day sentence in federal prison, then was placed on a 12-month supervised release. A statement from the White House mentioned that "Today’s pardon helps correct the wrong that Mueller’s team inflicted on so many people".

In addition, President Trump also pardoned Alex Van der Zwaan, who was sentenced to a 30-day prison stint and a $20,000 fine, for lying to United States Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigators about contacting Trump campaign officials.

These names were listed by the White House in a wave of pre-Christmas pardons, with President Trump granting full pardons to 15 people and commuted (fully or partly) the sentences of an additional five others.

Furthermore, the list included three former Republican lawmakers, four former U.S. service members who were convicted of killing Iraqi civilians while working as contractors (in 2007).

Last month, Trump pardoned his former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, who had twice pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI during the Russia investigation; which drew condemnation from Democrats and other critics.