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NEW YORK, Dec. 7 (AP) – Donald Trump’s company was found guilty of tax fraud Tuesday in a case brought by Manhattan district attorneys, in a major denial of the former president’s corporate financial practices.
A jury found two Trump Organization corporate entities guilty of all 17 counts, including conspiracy charges and falsifying business records.
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The verdict came a day after deliberations after a trial in which the Trump Organization was accused of taking part in a scheme by executives to avoid personal income taxes on work perks like rent-free apartments and luxury cars.
The conviction is validation for New York prosecutors, who have spent three years investigating the former president and his businesses, although the punishment is not expected to be severe enough to jeopardize the future of the Trump company.
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As punishment, the Trump Organization could be fined up to $1.6 million — a relatively small amount for a company of its size, but a conviction could complicate some of its future dealings .
Trump, who recently announced his re-election bid for the presidency, said the case against his company was part of a politically motivated “witch hunt” waged against him by vengeful Democrats.
Trump himself is not on trial, but prosecutors claim he “knows exactly” what the scheme was about, although lawyers for him and the company deny this.
The case against the company builds largely on the testimony of former Trump Organization treasurer Allen Weisselberg, who previously pleaded guilty to charges of manipulating the company’s books and his own compensation package to illegally reduce taxes.
Weisselberg testified in exchange for a promised five-month prison sentence.
To convict the Trump Organization, prosecutors must convince jurors that Weisselberg or his subordinate, Jeffrey McConney, the senior vice president and chief financial officer, were “senior management” agents acting on behalf of the company, and that Companies also benefited from his plans.
During the month-long trial, Trump Organization lawyers repeatedly stressed that “Wesselberg did it for Weisselberg.” They argued that the executive had gone rogue and betrayed the company’s trust. They argued that no one in the Trump family or company was to blame.
Although he testified as a witness for the prosecution, Weisselberg also sought to take responsibility on the stand, saying that no one in the Trump family knew what he was doing.
“It was my personal greed,” an emotional Wesselberg testified.
Weisselberg, who pleaded guilty to tax evasion on $1.7 million in fringe benefits, testified that he and McConney conspired to hide the extra compensation in his income by deducting their costs from his pre-tax salary and issuing falsified W-2 forms.
In his closing arguments, prosecutor Joshua Stanglass sought to counter claims that Trump knew nothing about the scheme. He showed jurors a lease signed by Trump for the Wesselberg apartment, paid for by the company, and a memo initialed by Trump authorizing a pay cut for another executive who received a stipend .
“Mr. Trump clearly sanctioned tax fraud,” Stangglass argued.
The verdict did not end Trump’s battle with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat who took office in January.
Bragg has said a related investigation into Trump, begun under his former district attorney, Cyrus Vance Jr., is “actively underway.”
In the wide-ranging probe, investigators are looking into whether Trump misled banks and others about the value of his holdings of real estate, golf courses and other assets — allegations that New York Attorney General Letitia Allegations at the heart of the pending lawsuit against Letitia James. his company.
The DA’s office is also investigating whether Trump allies violated any state laws when they made payments to two women who said they had sex with Republicans years ago.
Towards the end of his term last year, Vance directed deputies to present evidence to a grand jury for possible indictment of Trump. Once in office, though, Bragg had the grand jury dismissed in order to give the case a fresh look.
On Monday, he confirmed that a new chief prosecutor had been appointed to handle the probe, another indication that it was still ongoing. (Associated Press)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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