Defense attorneys for billionaire Thomas Barrack said Friday they plan to call him as a witness in his own defense as Barrack's trial for allegedly acting as an unregistered foreign agent nears its conclusion.
Judge Brian Cogan indicated Friday afternoon that the decision to call Barrack was a surprise"at midnight," leading him to call the jury in on a day they were expecting to have off.
Barrack, who maintains his innocence of charges of acting as an unregistered foreign agent for the United Arab Emirates, obstruction of justice and making false statements to the FBI, is accused of leveraging his long friendship with former President Donald Trump to sway U.S. foreign policy toward a"wish list" of UAE priorities.
Mnuchin said Barrack advocated for Qatar, one of the UAE's top adversaries, during a regional foreign policy crisis: an economic blockade by the UAE and its allies, which was supported by Trump.
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