Michael Flynn, the former U.S. national security adviser, did not report payments from a Russian state-backed television network and another firm with Russia ties in an initial financial disclosure, new documents released by the White House show.
Documents made public on April 1, signed by Flynn on March 31, listed speaking engagements to Russian entities, including the state-backed television channel RT and Volga-Dnepr Airlines, a charter cargo airline.
The disclosure does not say how much Flynn was paid for the speeches, but they are listed in the category titled "sources of compensation exceeding $5,000 in a year."
An earlier disclosure, signed by Flynn on February 11, omitted payments to Flynn for three speeches he made to the Russian companies.
Flynn's lawyer said the first filing included the speaking fees in bulk and that the disclosure was a draft version and not followed up because he left the government days afterward.
The payments from RT came to light in an indirect manner.
Representative Elijah Cummings (Democrat-Maryland) on March 16 released documents showing Flynn was paid more than $67,000 by Russian companies before the U.S. presidential election, including $33,750 from RT.
Cummings claimed that Flynn's acceptance of payments from RT violated the emoluments provision of the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits retired military officers from accepting gifts from foreign powers.
Flynn was fired by U.S. President Donald Trump as national security adviser on February 13 after only 24 days on the job.
Trump said the firing was because Flynn lied to Vice President Mike Pence about his discussions with the Russian ambassador to the United States during the presidential transition period.
The latest discrepancies on reporting income linked to Russia could add to Flynn’s potential legal programs.
He remains under scrutiny for his contacts with Russian officials in several separate investigations into Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
Through his lawyer, Flynn on March 30 expressed his willingness to testify before House and Senate intelligence committees if he is granted immunity from prosecution.
