AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack
- Donald Trump pardoned Jonathan Braun, a convicted drug smuggler, on his last day in office.
- Meanwhile, the DOJ hoped to use Braun in a separate probe into the predatory lending business.
- Braun's commutation meant the DOJ lost the leverage it needed to get Braun to cooperate, per NYT.
Donald Trump's pardoning of a convicted marijuana smuggler with ties to the Kushner family threw a wrench in the Justice Department's larger probe into the predatory lending industry, The New York Times reported.
On his last day in office, Trump pardoned Jonathan Braun, a Staten Island resident who at the time was serving a 10-year prison sentence for money laundering and running an international marijuana smuggling ring.