Fifth day of defense grilling of Jona Rechnitz in Norman Seabrook trial

Star federal corruption witness Jona Rechnitz faced another full day of grilling on cross-examination by the defense as he testified for a fifth-straight day Wednesday in the bribery trial of former city jail guards union boss Norman Seabrook.

Rechnitz admitted he twice altered emails with Mayor Bill de Blasio to make himself look more “impressive,” recovered insurance on a missing $59,000 watch and then didn’t tell the insurer when he found it, and fraudulently received health insurance for a no-show job for a year after he became a government witness.

A key figure in federal probes of corruption at the NYPD and City Hall last year, Rechnitz, 34, a real estate investor, has testified he was the bagman on a $60,000 bribe to Seabrook for investing union pension money with a hedge fund founded by co-defendant Murray Huberfeld. The defendants say he’s a liar.

U.S. District Judge Andrew Carter said he will rule tomorrow on whether Seabrook, an African-American, can put in evidence of racial bias — a picture of Rechnitz in blackface and an email referring to former president Barack Obama with a racially pejorative Yiddish term.

During cross-examination Wednesday, Rechnitz also admitted he tried to get de Blasio to put him on a police anti-corruption committee at the same time he was treating NYPD brass to dinners, plane trips and vacations in return for favors. He didn’t get the post.

His testimony resumes on Thursday.