Donald Trump?s former campaign chairman Paul Manafort was charged Monday with conspiracy against the United States and money laundering. Photo: AFP file

WASHINGTON: Donald Trump?s former campaign chairman Paul Manafort was charged Monday with conspiracy against the United States and money laundering, the first to come out of a sprawling probe into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

Manafort and business partner Rick Gates were charged with allegedly hiding millions of dollars they earned working for former Ukrainian politician Viktor Yanukovych and his pro-Moscow political party.

Special counsel Robert Mueller announced the 12 charges against the two, the first against any close former Trump aides stemming from a federal probe into possible collusion in Russia?s effort to tilt the US presidential election in Trump?s favor.