[ad_1]
FILE – In this March 8, 2018, photo file, Paul Manafort, left, former President Donald Trump's campaign chairman, walks with his wife Kathleen Manafort, upon their arrival at the federal courthouse. Alexandria, Alexandria, Virginia. The trial is expected to begin at the trial of former president of President Donald Trump's campaign. (Jacquelyn Martin, Dossier / Associated Press)
WASHINGTON – Two questions arise at the time Paul Manafort prepares to enter a federal hearing room Tuesday: The former president Donald Trump spend the rest of his life in prison? ? Or will defender Robert Mueller be defeated in the first trial of his team since his appointment more than a year ago?
12 jurors selected this week to answer questions from the Manafort trial on tax evasion and bank fraud at the Alexandria courthouse in Virginia. The jury group will be faced with questions from both sides and US District Judge TS Ellis III trying to eliminate potential prejudices in what has become a highly publicized and politically divided investigation
This task comes as the president and his lawyer-spokesman, Rudy Giuliani, are stepping up their attempts to undermine Mueller's investigation into the court of public opinion and as the president continues to wonder if he will sit for a private interview with the prosecutors. The president has criticized Mueller by name over the weekend and continues to call the special advocate's investigation into Russian electoral interference as a "witch hunt" and an "illegal swindle" . "
The 2016 presidential election and all Trump's attempts to impede justice, none of these topics should appear in the Manafort trial. In fact, prosecutors said last week that they were not expecting the word "Russia" to be mentioned.
Instead, the trial will focus on the Ukrainian consultation work of Manafort and will only touch briefly on his participation in the presidential campaign. 19659010] Prosecutors have lined 35 witnesses and more than 500 pieces of evidence, which they say will show that Manafort has earned more than $ 60 million from his Ukrainian work and then concealed a "significant percentage" of that money from him. ; IRS. Prosecutors will also say that Manafort has fraudulently obtained millions more in bank loans, including during his campaign time.
In particular, prosecutors say that they will present evidence that a president of one of the banks allowed Manafort to file inaccurate information on the loan. the exchange for a role on the Republican campaign and the promise of a job in the Trump administration that never materialized.
At the center of all this will be another Trump campaign assistant, Rick Gates, who has worked for years for Manafort in Ukraine and is also accused of helping him to falsify the paperwork used to obtain bank loans. . Gates, who signed an advocacy deal with Mueller earlier this year, is expected to testify against his former mentor.
Gates should also play a key role in the second Manafort trial scheduled for September. This trial, which is taking place in the District of Columbia, involves allegations that the long-time political advisor would have acted as an unregistered foreign agent for Ukrainian interests and made false statements to the US government.
Manafort is the only American to have opted for
The 31 others charged either plead guilty or are Russians considered unlikely to enter an American courtroom. Three Russian companies were also accused. One of these companies has pleaded not guilty and is fighting the charges brought in federal courts in Washington.
___
Follow Chad Day on https://twitter.com/ChadSDay and Eric Tucker on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/ etuckerAP
Copyright 2018 L & # 39 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This document may not be published, distributed, rewritten or redistributed.
[ad_2]
Source link
