NEW YORK — Donald Trump knew about a 15-year tax evasion by longtime executives of his namesake company, a prosecutor said Friday, illegal activity that ended when the company moved into the White House of Trump. when I entered.
At the end of the Trump Organization's criminal trial, prosecutors suggested that Trump knew about the crimes committed by his top aides. The allegation was a way to support his theory that the property, hotel and golf company was criminally guilty and profiting from tax evasion.
"The whole narrative that Donald Trump was blissfully ignorant just wasn't true," Assistant District Attorney Joshua Steinglass said during his summary. He asked jurors, who are due to begin deliberations in the case on Monday, to reject the idea that the leaders who committed the crimes simply became "bad guys".
Steinglass also told the jury that "it doesn't matter" if they believe Trump knew about the hoax, because the former president is not considered a co-conspirator in the case.
Trump has not been accused of wrongdoing. Alan Wesselberg – his former chief financial officer and employee of the Trump family for half a century – pleaded guilty to fraud this summer. Fraud testimony from Wesselberg and Trump Organization comptroller Jeffrey McConey — who were automatically granted immunity under state law when they appeared before the grand jury — was key to the case. the accusation.
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Prosecutors say the company benefited from the fraud in several ways, including reducing its payroll costs and avoiding the Medicare tax burden.
For the company to be convicted of a misdemeanor and fined up to $1.6 million, the district attorney must prove that Weisselberg or McConney had "some intention" to help the company further. beyond the reduction of its own tax debt. The fraud included tax-free luxury apartments, Mercedes-Benzes and private school fees for Wesselberg's grandchildren.
In a Truthful social media post earlier this week, Trump appeared to deny any suggestion that he knew what Wesselberg and McConey had done, writing that "it didn't work for Trump" and that "we knew."
Defense attorney Susan Knuckles reminded jurors in her brief Thursday that Wesselberg and McConee said Trump "didn't know how things were reported on Alan Wesselberg's tax returns" and argued that Trump said to its leaders.
During the trial, prosecutors avoided the issue and did not present evidence to directly refute Wesselberg and McConey's altercation. But on Friday, New York Supreme Court Justice Joan Murchin ruled that lawyers for the Trump Organization had opened the door to discussing whether Trump knew when he told jurors that Wesselberg had " cheated" the Trump family.
"The fact that it was passed and an act that Mr. Trump was aware of directly contradicts this false narrative," Steinglass argued in arguments outside the presence of the jury.
Wesselberg testified that the Trump Organization's tax schemes worked in his favor.
Murchin agreed to allow prosecutors to do so, noting that the Trump Organization's defense team mentioned Trump "repeatedly" during the trial, ostensibly to "take Mr. Trump off the table and off the proceedings. defence".
Weisselberg and other corporate executives receive annual bonuses reported on tax forms known as 1099s, which are typically used to pay independent contractors, not employees. Reportedly, this was standard operation for accounting staff at the Trump Organization prior to 2017, when Trump became president.
Lawyers for the Trump Organization have argued that Wesselberg — who is still on the company's payroll but on paid leave — secretly orchestrated the tax evasion, hiding his conduct from Trump. Weisberg testified that Trump approved the amount of his salary and annual bonus but did not know how his income was reported, saving him $1.7 million in taxes from 2005 to 2017.
Wesselberg pleaded guilty in August to crimes including tax evasion and conspiracy. Facing up to 15 years in prison, he agreed to testify against the company in exchange for a significantly reduced prison sentence of five months. He will also have to pay nearly $2 million in back taxes.
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