The Trump Organization and its longtime chief financial officer, Alan Weiselberg, will go to trial on October 24 for tax fraud, after a New York state judge rejected his request to dismiss the case against him.
weiselberg and trump The organization was accused last year of conspiring to evade income tax by paying unnotified allowances to some employees. Weiselberg, 74, was reportedly the main beneficiary of the scheme, receiving benefits for both him and his wife, including Manhattan luxury apartments and Mercedes-Benz cars.
The date of October 24 is the beginning of the jury selection in the trial.
Although the former president Donald Trump The case does not have a defendant, a lawsuit for his company and a longtime business associate comes as he faces a rising tide of legal threats of his own.
His Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida was searched Monday by federal agents investigating a possible removal of his confidential documents from the White House, and he asked questions on Wednesday in a civil investigation. invoked his Fifth Amendment against self-blame to avoid answering. of their family real estate business by New York Attorney General Letitia James.
Weiselberg and the Trump Organization were accused last July of conspiring to evade income tax by paying unrestricted allowances to certain employees. Weiselberg was reportedly the main beneficiary of the scheme, receiving benefits for both him and his wife, including a free Manhattan luxury apartment and Mercedes-Benz cars.
Weiselberg and the Trump Organization pleaded not guilty to the charges and asked the judge to dismiss the case. The CFO argued in court filings that he was charged primarily because he refused to cooperate with Trump’s prosecution.
Two veteran prosecutors leading the investigation resigned in February, alleging that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg stopped supporting his push to bring criminal charges against the former president. Bragg has said the investigation is ongoing. Trump unsuccessfully fought against sitting for James’ statement by arguing that his civil investigation was a smokescreen to gather evidence for Bragg’s criminal investigation.
Weiselberg said prosecutors told him in a meeting before the July 2021 indictment that his only “way out” would be to cooperate with Trump’s investigation. He said he was also warned that one of his sons could face charges.
The CFO also argued that the state’s indictment was halted by a federal immunity granted to testify during an investigation into payments to porn star Stormy Daniels, a former Trump lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen, before the 2016 election. was. Weiselberg claims the New York case is based largely on evidence provided by Cohen, a defendant who was convicted on federal charges and has since become a fierce critic of Trump.
Weiselberg and the company both argued that the district attorney had no authority to charge for the alleged avoidance of federal income tax. He also suggested that some of the perks could be described as “gifts” made by Trump himself, rather than income paid for by the company.
In arguing against the dismissal of the charges, Bragg denied selectively targeting the Trump Organization and Weiselberg, arguing that the allegations were “simple” and based on “criminal tax evasion that occurred in New York County and that such offices were routinely held.” It arises from the fact that Alan Weiselberg has violated a basic mandate that all New Yorkers honestly report and pay taxes on their income.”
Prosecutors also said the investigation was launched in response to a Bloomberg News story from November 2020 detailing how the Trump Organization relied on a variety of payment practices to help lower its tax bills.
The case is NY v The Trump Organization, 01473-2021, New York State Supreme Court (Manhattan).
This story has been published without modification in text from a wire agency feed.
catch all politics news And updates on Live Mint. download mint news app to receive daily market update & Live business News,