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Paul Manafort – former head of the campaign of Donald Trump – testified Tuesday (31) the opening of his trial, the first caused by the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential race in the United States.
Manafort, 69, said he was found guilty of 18 counts of bank and tax fraud related to his lobbying activities in favor of the former pro-Russian government of Ukraine.
The indictment is the result of the investigation of Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller on and Russian interference in the last US election race, although the charges are unrelated at Manafort's work as Trump's campaign leader.
The trial is expected to last about three weeks
"Paul Manafort himself put himself and his money above the law," said Federal Attorney Uzo Asonye at the opening Hearings in the court of Alexandria, Virginia
"All of these charges are simply a question: that Paul Manafort lied?" gave details of Manafort's drinking habits, including a coat of clothing. Ostrich $ 15,000, before being interrupted by the judge, who explained that it was not a crime.
The defense called Manafort "very busy," who delegated the day-to-day administration of things to his then-partner Richard Gates, a key witness in the trial.
Republican veteran political consultant, led by Manafort For three months, the Trump campaign team, until he was forced to withdraw because of his lobbying activity in Ukraine .
Five counts are alleged against him for false tax returns, for failing to inform the Internal Revenue Service Cyprus and other countries to hide millions of dollars in revenue of their activities on behalf of the former Ukrainian pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych.
He is also accused of bank fraud related to several multi-million dollar loans obtained from various banks
In court, Manafort took notes and even let out a smile in response to Judge TS Ellis jokes III. Prosecutors intend to present nearly 30 witnesses during the trial, including Richard Gates, a former partner of Manafort, who cooperates with prosecutors after the trial.
Mueller has so far indicted 32 people during the investigation into the alleged collusion between the Trump campaign and the United States of America.
Trump often denounces Mueller's investigation as a politically motivated "witch hunt" and also denies any relationship between his campaign and Moscow
. others, including former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, pleaded guilty, Manafort refused to make an out-of-court protest, anti-Trump protesters gathered with placards that said "Stop him "," It's the time of Mueller, "and" Trump would not stay a second in jail for you. "
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Expectation of Forgiveness?
Legal experts believe that Manafort may be waiting to be declared innocent, or obtain a presidential pardon
Jonathan Turley, professor at the Faculty of Law of George Washington University,
"This is an exceptionally difficult case for the defense," Turley told AFP
"Mueller did not that to get the conviction of one of the charges to arrest Manafort for a decade, "he said." At age 69, this should weigh heavily on him, "he added. [19659003] Turley also stated that he believes that "jurors are unlikely to identify, or have empathy for, Paul Manafort," whose expensive lifestyle is detailed in the documents
The jury of 12 members, six men and six women, was chosen Tuesday after almost four hours
"They will see a man who has ensé half a million dollars just with gardening. "]
Turley felt that Manafort can bet on" the strategy of forgiveness ", because he" remained loyal "and" can think that & # 39; He does not have much to lose if he is judged by his chances of a presidential pardon. "
" If you cooperate with Mueller, the likelihood of a pardon will be greatly reduced. "Anafort spent last month in a jail in Alexandria, a suburb of Washington, after a federal judge revoked his home arrest and obtained a $ 10 million bail for suspected manipulation of witnesses in another trial Condemning in September in the federal capital charges – also brought by Mueller – conspiracy, money laundering and not to be registered as a representative of a government
Trump described Manafort's arrest as "very unfair" in June (db) = d.getElementById (id)) {var js = d.createElement ("script"), ref = d. getElementsByTagName ("script") [0] js.id = id, js.async = true, js.src = "https: / / connect.facebook.net / en_br /all.js", ref.parentNode .insertBefore (js, ref)}} (document)
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