The Trump Organization’s tax evasion trial opens in New York
Donald Trump’s trial for fraud and tax evasion opens on Monday. The former president who, however, is not personally targeted by this criminal component.
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AFP
This trial, which will begin with the selection of the jurors, concerns the allegations of irregularities in the company’s accounts since 2005, and the concealment from the tax authorities of the compensation received by the top management of the group.
Former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg, 75, pleaded guilty to 15 counts of fraud and tax evasion involving $ 1.76 million in undeclared revenue between 2005 and 2021.
This close friend of Donald Trump is accused of taking advantage of undeclared perks in kind, including an apartment in an upscale Manhattan neighborhood, renting two Mercedes for him and his wife, or cash for his vacation.
He will be one of the key witnesses in the trial against the company, which is currently run by two of the former president’s sons – Donald Trump Jr and Eric Trump – and which owns investments in real estate, hotels and golf courses, among others. Two subsidiaries were targeted, Trump Corporation and Trump Payroll Corp.
“Allen Weisselberg admitted in court that he used his position at the Trump Organization to defraud taxpayers and enrich himself personally,” Manhattan attorney Alvin Bragg said in August, when the former CFO pleaded guilty. “The agreement reached with justice links the Trump Organization directly to a wide range of criminal activities,” he added.
Under the settlement, Allen Weisselberg is specifically required to pay nearly $ 2 million in taxes, with penalties and interest, and testify at the trial. He has so far always refused to personally testify against Donald Trump.
The Trump Organization, which pleaded not guilty, is accused of holding parallel accounts, under the supervision of Allen Weisselberg, to hide the wage supplements he and other leaders have received. If the facts are proven, the company could be sentenced to a hefty fine.
Donald Trump, who has not officially announced his 2024 presidential candidacy but does not hide his ambitions, is not himself in the crosshairs of this process, unlike another civil party. This other investigation, also related to suspicions of tax evasion within the Trump Organization, is conducted by the New York State Attorney General, Letitia James. The latter announced in September legal action against Donald Trump and his children Donald Trump Jr, Ivanka Trump and Eric Trump. He is asking for $ 250 million in repairs on behalf of New York State.
AFP
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