Supporters of President Donald Trump on Tuesday chanted "lock her up" at a campaign rally in West Virginia, just hours after Trump was dealt major blows in federal courts in two cases involving people close to him.

Many on social media felt it was ironic his supporters chose to chant "lock her up" on Tuesday given the developments.

The infamous "lock her up" chant began during the 2016 campaign in relation to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's controversial use of a private email server and the FBI investigation surrounding it.

Supporters of President Donald Trump on Tuesday chanted "lock her up" at a Make America Great Again rally in West Virginia, just hours after Trump was dealt major blows in federal courts in two cases involving people close to him.

Michael Cohen, Trump's former personal attorney, on Tuesday pleaded guilty to eight crimes in a federal court in New York.

In the process, Cohen testified under oath that he broke campaign finance law under Trump's orders with the intention of influencing the election. The campaign finance violations involved payments to silence two women who allegedly had affairs with the president. Cohen will be sentenced in December and could face over five years in prison.

Meanwhile, Paul Manafort, the former chairman of Trump's presidential campaign, was found guilty on eight counts of financial crimes in a federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, and faces up to 80 years in prison. The jury could not reach a verdict on 10 other counts he was accused of, leading the judge to declare a mistrial on those charges.

These developments did not deter Trump supporters from indulging in the infamous "lock her up" chant, which began during the 2016 campaign in relation to former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's controversial use of a private email server and the FBI investigation surrounding it.

The FBI ultimately deemed Clinton's use of a private email server while she worked for the State Department as reckless, but did not pursue criminal charges. Despite the FBI's findings, Trump continues to draw attention to this issue and "lock her up" is frequently heard at his rallies.

But many on social media felt it was ironic his supporters chose to chant "lock her up" on Tuesday given the developments earlier in the day.

'It's like a parallel universe'

Trump calls Mueller investigation a 'disgrace' after Manafort verdict

Speaking on Manafort's tough day in court before the West Virginia rally, Trump described his ex-campaign chairman as a "good man" and said he felt "very sad about it."

Manafort's legal woes are linked to special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the US presidential election and the Trump campaign's alleged collusion.

The president routinely decries the Mueller probe and on Tuesday referred to it as a "witch hunt" and a "disgrace" after the Manafort verdict.

Trump did not mention Cohen or Manfort during Tuesday's rally.