WASHINGTON — Accused of multiple financial crimes, President Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman on Thursday attacked the strength of the evidence against him, saying the case brought by special counsel Robert Mueller is “embellished.”

In a court filing Thursday, attorneys for Paul Manafort defended him as a “successful, international political consultant” who, by nature of his work on behalf of foreign political parties, was necessarily involved in international financial transactions. They say Manafort, who led Trump’s campaign for several months last year, has done nothing wrong and doesn’t pose a risk of fleeing the country.

The filing was the first volley from Manafort’s defense team, which seeks to undermine a 12-count indictment against him and longtime business associate Rick Gates. Mueller announced the indictment Monday, charging the men with money laundering and other financial crimes related to their political consulting work for Ukraine’s former ruling party.

They were placed on house arrest during a court appearance earlier this week, released on multimillion-dollar bonds. And on Thursday, both men appeared in federal court in Washington, where a judge ruled that they would remain on home confinement and electronic monitoring at least through the weekend.

Attorneys for Manafort, 68, and Gates, 45, are asking U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson to release them while they await trial, saying the bonds are enough to ensure they show up for court. The judge said she would take up the matter again at a hearing Monday.