Roger J. Stone Jr., a longtime informal adviser to President Trump, made a statement outside a federal court in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Roger J. Stone Jr., a longtime informal adviser to President Trump, was arrested by the F. B. I. early Friday morning at his home in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
His indictment comes as part of the investigation by the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III.
[Read more about the arrest and the charges.]
Mr. Stone appeared outside a federal courthouse hours later. The following is a transcript, as prepared by The New York Times, of his remarks and those of his lawyer, Bruce Rogow.
_____________
[Crowd shouting expletives]
MR. ROGOW: Whoa, whoa. Mr. Stone is going to speak. He speaks for himself. You know that Roger Stone has always spoken for himself. He’s never been shy about telling his story. He is innocent. We’re going to defend this case, and we’re going to win this case.
But let me start out by saying that the spectacle this morning was completely unnecessary. Everyone knows where Roger Stone is; he’s not in hiding. The spectacle this morning with the SWAT team breaking into his house, searching the house, scaring his wife, scaring his dogs, completely unnecessary. A telephone call would have done the job, and Mr. Stone would have appeared.
But let me let Roger speak for himself. There’s nothing to hide. He has nothing to hide, and he’s spoken before and he’ll speak to you now. Roger?
[SPECTATOR: We stand with you, Roger!]
MR. STONE: Thank you.
[Crowd booing]
MR. STONE: Thank you very much. As I have always said, the worst thing than being talked about is not being talked about. After a two-year inquisition, the charges today relate in no way to Russian collusion, WikiLeaks collaboration or any other illegal act in connection with the 2016 campaign.
