Prosecutors and defense rest case in trial of man charged with soliciting murder of Border Patrol Cmdr. Bovino

After less than a day of testimony, federal prosecutors and defense attorneys both rested their case Wednesday afternoon in the trial of a Little Village man accused of attempting to put out a hit on Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino.

This is the first trial tied to the federal government's Operation Midway Blitz.

Federal prosecutors accuse Juan Espinoza Martinez of offering a $10,000 bounty on Bovino, who was the face of the Trump administration's immigration enforcement effort in the Chicago area last year.

The government's star witness in the trial was the man who received Snapchat messages from Martinez, which prosecutors said placed a bounty on Bovino.

Adrian Jimenez, 44, met Espinoza Martinez through his small construction business, but that witness has a felony record and – unbeknownst to Martinez – has also been working as a police informant since the 1990s.

Prosecutors have said messages Espinoza Martinez sent to Jimenez offered $2,000 for information on Bovino, and $10,000 for his murder.

Espinoza Martinez allegedly sent the messages as a member of the Latin Kings street gang or working on their behalf.

However, last week, U.S. District Judge Joan Lefkow barred prosecutors from introducing evidence that suggests the defendant was a member of a gang or acting on behalf of a street gang, finding such testimony could unfairly prejudice the jury without any actual evidence showing he's a gang member or that a gang directed him to put a hit out on Bovino.

While Lefkow barred any testimony that Martinez has gang ties, she ruled witnesses may testify about what certain abbreviations and emojis meant to them in those messages — without linking those messages to a street gang.

The prosecution's case hinges on the Snapchat messages between Espinoza Martinez and Jimenez. Prosecutors argue they amount to a bounty, but the defense team has said the messages were nothing more a man sharing neighborhood gossip with a friend.

Jimenez said he received the messages from Espinoza Martinez in early October, took photos of them with a second phone, and almost immediately sent them on to someone at Homeland Security that he's worked with in the past.

Jimenez walked to and from the witness box with an obvious limp, slowly lowering himself in to the chair. The would-be hitman's health and mobility were so obvious that attorneys on both sides addressed it with the jury.

CBS News Chicago Legal Analyst Irv Miller said Martinez' physical condition could be a key factor for the jury in determining whether Espinoza Martinez was trying to put a hit on Bovino.

"Would you hire a hitman that can barely walk? That can't go up stairs? Does that make a lot sense? Or do you want somebody who would be able to, if they're caught, they could start running away from the scene and get away. I think some of the jurors may come to that conclusion," Miller said.

Prosecutors rested their case after calling Jiminez and two agents who worked this case.

For their only witness, the defense called Oscar Espinoza, the defendant's younger brother, who testified that he told his brother that this was a joke, and that nobody would think those types of numbers were real. Espinoza Martinez himself did not take the stand.

Espinoza Martinez has pleaded not guilty and faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted. His attorneys have denied he has any gang ties or criminal history.

Jurors are set to hear closing arguments on Thursday.