The investigation into hush money for alleged Trump affairs had begun. Now the first criminal charge against the corporate empire of the ex-US president is on the table.
After years of investigation, the New York Public Prosecutor’s Office is bringing criminal charges against the Trump organization’s business practices for the first time. In the indictment published on Thursday in a New York court, the group and its CFO Allen Weisselberg are accused of systematically evading taxes for at least 15 years.
In the case of Weisselberg, this involves taxes on services worth more than $ 1.7 million. The 73-year-old and the Trump organization pleaded “not guilty”. Ex-US President Donald Trump is not personally charged.
Payments for apartments, cars, and schooling
“The purpose of the system was to compensate Weisselberg and other executives of the Trump organization in a way that was ‘off the books’,” the indictment said. The beneficiaries therefore received significant parts of their income in an indirect and disguised manner, which was not reported to the tax authorities. The non-taxed services included payments for apartments, cars or the schooling of relatives.
The total of 15 charges include aggravated theft and tax fraud. The prosecution hopes to get Weisselberg to cooperate and testify against Trump in order to improve his own prospects in the case. In addition to family members, Weisselberg is a key figure in the company.
Trump organization lawyers condemned the charges as “politically motivated”. The former president also spoke up with a cryptic statement: “Do people see what the prosecutors of the radical left are trying to do to 75 million voters and patriots?” Trump alluded to his voters in the lost presidential election last year – 74.2 million according to official figures – and seemed to indicate that he, too, considers the indictment politically motivated.
Charges against Donald Trump’s corporate empire after more than two years of investigation
Meanwhile, it is eagerly awaited whether the proceedings initiated on Thursday are only the first surcharge for further charges, possibly for members of Trump’s family or ultimately even the former head of government himself. New York Attorney General Letitia James emphasized that it is “ongoing criminal justice Investigation “act:” This investigation will continue and we will follow the facts and the law wherever they lead.
The expected indictment against the Trump organization is the result of more than two years of investigation by Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance. That investigation began with investigations into former Trump attorney Michael Cohen for hiding money payments to women who allegedly had affairs with Trump. Most recently, they had led to a dispute in the Supreme Court over the release of Trump’s tax documents.
Donald Trump was once known as the real estate tycoon as the head of the Trump organization, which consists of many smaller companies. He is considered to be very closely interwoven with his corporate empire. According to its own statements, the group has tens of thousands of employees in several high-rise buildings, hotels or on golf courses.
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