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Actor Wesley Snipes' defence team has unexpectedly rested its case in his tax fraud trial, cutting in half a proceeding once expected to last a month.
The move means there will not be any more stars in the courtroom. A number of notables were on Snipes' witness list when the trial began two weeks ago, including Sylvester Stallone, Muhammad Ali, Spike Lee and Woody Harrelson.
Snipes allegedly stopped filing his federal tax returns in 2000, demanded US$11 million ($14.4 million) in refunds on taxes previously paid and tried to settle other US Treasury debts with fake cheques.
Snipes' attorneys say he was the victim of unscrupulous accountants, and sincerely believed he did not have to pay taxes.
