United States President Donald Trump has issued a pardon to Stephen Buyer, a former Republican congressman from Indiana who served nearly two years in prison for making illegal stock trades based on inside information after leaving office.

The pardon, dated Thursday, was released by the White House late Friday night. Buyer was sentenced to 22 months in prison in 2023 for trades made while working as a consultant and lobbyist. He was ordered to forfeit more than $350,000 in illegal gains and pay a $10,000 fine. He was released in 2025.

The Supreme Court in May rejected Buyer’s appeal without comment. In granting “a full, complete, and unconditional pardon,” Trump cited Buyer’s work as a judge advocate general in the US Army and as a politician in the House, describing his career as “distinguished and highly productive.”

Buyer said the pardon “corrects a politically motivated prosecution” and that it was “horrific to be imprisoned for a crime that I did not commit.” He maintains his innocence.

Trump used his Truth Social platform on May 31 to share letters requesting a pardon for Buyer. A letter signed by over 40 former Republicans in Congress said Buyer was “targeted by the deep state” due to his involvement in Clinton’s impeachment trial.

A second letter from five current House Republicans argued that pardoning Buyer would bring justice. Buyer, 67, was convicted in connection with insider trading involving the $26.5 billion merger of T-Mobile and Sprint and illegal trades in Navigant Consulting.

Source: www.aljazeera.com