Paul Manafort trial Day 5: Rick Gates testifies he committed bank, tax fraud at Manafort's direction

Paul Manafort, President Trump’s onetime campaign chairman, is on trial in federal court in Alexandria on bank and tax fraud charges. Prosecutors allege he failed to pay taxes on millions he made from his work for a Russia-friendly Ukrainian political party, then lied to get loans when the cash stopped coming in.

The case is being prosecuted by the special counsel investigating Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. We’ll have live coverage here throughout Day 5 of the trial.

5:58 p.m.: Prosecutor Greg Andres gets into argument with judge after testimony ends

After dismissing the jury, Judge Ellis laid into prosecutor Greg Andres for what he saw as unnecessary questioning about the motivations of billionnaires involved in politics in Ukraine.

Andres pushed back angrily, prompting a heated exchange that went on for over ten minutes.

Ellis repeatedly criticized Andres for not making eye contact, saying “look at me” and saying he “looked down as if to say, ‘that’s BS.'”

Andres responded with frustration saying, “You continue to interpret our reactions in some way,” when the lawyers don’t do the same to the judge.

“You never rolled your eyes,” Ellis said, a reference to when he criticized the attorneys for doing so last week, “but you’re not the only one sitting at that table.”

The substance of the argument is how prosecutors can characterize the people who paid Manafort through companies in Cyprus.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/paul-manafort-trial-day-5-rick-gates-testifies-he-committed-bank-tax-fraud-at-manafort’s-direction/ar-BBLzLDA