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Federal prosecutors plan to call accountants to testify about President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman, as the first week of Paul Manafort's fraud and conspiracy trial gallops to a close.
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The shift in focus toward the former Trump campaign chief's tax practices follows a slew of witnesses discussing Manafort's ostentatious spending habits on clothes, cars, real estate and home decor.
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Prosecutors said on Wednesday that they expect to finish their case in chief by next week, which could put them ahead of schedule in a trial expected to last up to three weeks.
Federal prosecutors planned to call accountants to testify Friday in the fraud and conspiracy trial of former Donald Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort as the first week of testimony galloped to a close.
The lawyers from special counsel Robert Mueller 's Russia probe called Manafort's former accountant, Philip Ayliff, back to the stand after he testified Thursday afternoon that Manafort signed tax forms claiming to have no foreign bank accounts from 2011 to 2014.
Manafort, President Donald Trump's campaign chairman from May to August 2016, is on trial on 18 counts, including failing to file foreign bank account reports, bank fraud, conspiracy and filing false income tax returns. Accountant Cindy LaPorta, another witness from the same firm as Ayliff, is also expected to testify Friday.
But the question remains when Rick Gates will enter the courtroom to testify against Manafort, his longtime business partner. Gates, who was charged along with Manafort in a separate criminal case in Washington, has already pleaded guilty to one count each of lying to investigators and conspiracy against the United States. He agreed to cooperate with the special counsel as part of his plea deal.
Manafort's lawyers sought to establish Gates as the true culprit behind any omissions or mistakes on Manafort's tax filings. "This is about Mr. Manafort placing his trust in the wrong person," defense attorney Thomas Zehnle said in his opening statement.
Ayliff, reading from exhibits presented by prosecutors, said Manafort himself signed letters of engagement with the accounting firm. Ayliff said the letters cautioned that "the law provides various penalties that may be imposed when taxpayers understate their tax liability." Ayliff also told prosecutors his firm asks clients "about foreign accounts every year," news outlets reported .
The shift in focus toward the former Trump campaign chief's tax practices on Friday follows a slew of witnesses discussing Manafort's ostentatious spending habits on clothes, cars, real estate and home decor . Numerous witnesses also testified that Manafort paid them in wire transfers from banks located in Cyprus.