The star witness in Paul Manafort's financial fraud trial says the former Trump campaign chairman told him to be truthful about offshore shell companies and bank accounts during a 2014 interview with the FBI.
Rick Gates said under questioning from Manafort's lawyer today that he told FBI agents and Justice Department lawyers about some of the offshore companies that contained millions of dollars in proceeds from their Ukrainian political work.
The lawyer, Kevin Downing, was trying to counter earlier testimony that Manafort had encouraged Gates to deceive authorities by directing him to help conceal his foreign income and to submit phony mortgage and tax documents on his behalf.
The interview was part of an FBI investigation that sought to recover assets looted from the Ukrainian government under the rule of former President Viktor Yanukovych.
Prosecutors have noted that Gates and Manafort were not the targets of the investigation at the time of the interview.
Defense lawyers wrapped up their questioning of Gates Wednesday following a bruising cross-examination that focused on Gates's own crimes, an extramarital affair and a guilty plea with special counsel Robert Mueller's office that may spare him severe punishment.
Manafort's lawyers are determined to impugn the credibility of Gates, who pleaded guilty in Mueller's investigation and agreed to cooperate with investigators by testifying in the financial fraud trial.
"After all the lies you've told and the fraud you've committed, you expect this jury to believe you?" Downing asked incredulously.
Gates said he did, but the defense lawyer wasn't satisfied. He scoffed at the idea that Gates had repented for his actions, noting that prosecutors have said they won't oppose his bid for probation and getting him to acknowledge he had not repaid the money he had taken from Manafort.
After Gates described his theft as "unauthorised transactions" instead of embezzlement, Downing prodded him to use the latter term and Gates ultimately relented, saying, "It was embezzlement from Mr. Manafort."
Manafort and Gates were the first two people indicted in Mueller's investigation into potential ties between Russia and the Trump campaign. Gates pleaded guilty months later and agreed to cooperate in Mueller's investigation of Manafort, the only
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