Trade advisor to former United States President Donald Trump, Peter Navarro, reported to a federal prison in Miami on Tuesday to serve a four month term after he was sentenced in January for contempt of congress.

Mr Navarro was found guilty of two counts of criminal contempt last September after he stonewalled the U.S. Congress’s subpoena as part of investigations into the January 6 riotous protests at the capitol.

The 75-year-old Havard trained economist spoke briefly in a news conference before turning himself in to prison officials. He described his situation as a “tragedy” owing to the fact that he may have completed his sentence before an appeal pulls through.

“I’m afraid of only one thing, I’m afraid for my country, because this — what they are doing — will have a chilling effect on every American, regardless of their party,” he told reporters during the conference.

The House committee sought to interview Mr Navarro because he, alongside other officials, formulated a strategy to engage Republican allies in Congress to stall the 2020 election certification by persistently contesting electoral vote tallies in crucial states. This plan, dubbed the “Green Bay Sweep,” was openly discussed by Mr Navarro in his memoir and interviews.

However, when the committee requested his testimony and relevant documents from that period, Mr Navarro declined to cooperate.

Mr Navarro said that his case raised unique legal inquiries concerning the division of powers and the extent of executive privilege, as he had been acting on behalf of the president.

During his trial, Mr Navarro’s legal team argued that he operated under the belief that Mr Trump had invoked executive privilege and therefore expected him not to comply. Yet, Mr Navarro’s lawyers struggled to provide substantial evidence that Mr Trump had issued such instructions.

A representative of Mr Navarro’s legal team declined to comment on the appeal.