A jury in New York found the Trump Organization guilty of the crime of tax evasion in a harsh reprimand from the former US president's company.
Although Donald Trump was not tried in person, prosecutors for the Manhattan District Attorney insisted he was fully aware of the long-running scheme in which executives were allegedly enriched by unofficial incitement to pay low wages. Reduction of the company's tax burden.
"This was a case of greed and fraud," Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in a statement celebrating the guilty verdict. "In Manhattan, no business is above the law."
A 12-person jury in New York state court was dismissed Monday morning after a six-week trial in which lawyers for the Trump Organization accused only former chief financial officer Alan Wesselberg of fraud.
Trump, who recently launched his 2024 campaign, attacked the investigation as part of a politically motivated "witch hunt". In a statement on Tuesday, the Trump Organization condemned the decision, which could result in fines of up to $1.6 million, a relatively small amount for such a large company, although it could affect future business. A lawyer for the Trump Organization has promised to appeal.
"The idea that a company can be held liable for the actions of an employee, for its benefit, on its tax returns is simply absurd," the company said in a statement.
Wesselberg, a former close Trump associate, accepted a plea deal earlier this year, pleading guilty to fraud in exchange for a five-month prison sentence. Prosecutors presented a case that relied heavily on Wesselberg's testimony.
The move is a blow to Trump and his family, who rose to fame as New York real estate moguls but whose business practices have long been marred by rumors of corruption.
It's also the latest in a series of legal issues surrounding Trump, including his efforts to overturn Joe Biden's 2020 election victory and the White House from his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. documents.
The month-long trial featured testimony from seven witnesses, including Wesselberg, one of Trump's most trusted advisers, and Senior Vice President and Comptroller Jeffrey McConey. An outside accountant who spent years preparing Trump and company tax returns also testified. In their closing statement to the jury, prosecutors alleged that Trump "implicitly endorsed tax evasion."
During their deliberations, the jurors focused on the final charge on the verdict sheet: falsifying business records. The judges issued two notices on Tuesday seeking clarification of allegations of falsifying business records and reading related depositions.
Wesselberg testified that he ordered Accounts Payable Supervisor Deborah Tarasoff to remove "Alan Wesselberg's" notes from Trump's ledger entries indicating that Trump had personally paid Wesselberg's grandson.
First, the jurors asked the judge to reread the indictment and the elements necessary to reach a guilty verdict. Later they demanded to hear Tarasov's testimony again. Tarasoff, a veteran of the Trump Organization, testified that in September 2016, Wesselberg called him into his office and said, "Come in and write my name."
After deliberations resumed on Tuesday, jurors sent a note asking the judge to reread the three counts of forgery in business writing relating to the creation of false W2 tax forms for Weisselberg in 2015, 2016, and 2017.
The lawsuit does not end the legal challenges Trump and his companies face, far from it. Bragg said a related investigation he inherited from his predecessor, District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr., "is ongoing." In this case, investigators are focused on examining the integrity of the Trump Organization's financial statements.
And earlier this year, New York State Attorney General Letitia James filed a sweeping civil lawsuit against the former president, his three adult children, and the Trump Organization after a lengthy investigation by her desk. That lawsuit, which is still ongoing, accuses Trump and his sons of "appalling" fraud, alleging they provided fraudulent claims to creditors and insurers. Your real estate prices
About the Creator
Hazim
"Embarking on a symphony of flavours, wanderlust, and personal growth – tune in for a unique blend of foodie adventures, travel chronicles, and self-discovery vibes."
Rivers of Death
Rivers bring water the element essential to all life on Earth but wherever rivers flow they also bring death surprise attacks Savage kills and brutal fights every day is a battle for survival on these rivers of [Applause] death I'm under the African Sun Staying Alive is hot thirsty work and among the ranks of animals jostling to get a drink lurk Killers waiting to strike but while Lions may be fearsome and the huge Nile crocodiles ruthless Predators one of the continent's deadliest River Killers is mostly vegetarian renowned wallowers spending up to 16 hours a day lounging in the water hippos could be mistaken for relaxed creatures and yet the river horse as their name translates from ancient Greek can be a very angry pony indeed with tusks up to a foot and a half long hippos are literally armed to the teeth and a charging bull Hipp can impact with the weight force of a pickup truck what's more hippos May brutally defend their territory an Impala has been chased into a muddy Watering Hole by a lion it's stuck but for fortunately for the stricken analou the lion is reluctant to follow it into the Meer unfortunately it finds itself in the domain of a hippo ill disposed to uninvited guests the hippo's not stealing the watching Lion's meal she's most likely just aggressively defending her calf and the Impala pays the ultimate price for crossing a doting mother hippos are thought to kill more people each year than the rest of Africa's most dangerous animals combined and during mating season their ruthless aggression is directed at other hippos two bulls square up the pod's dominant male and a Challenger at stake the Riverbanks Prime mating territory and a Herm of females the dominant male puts on an aggressive display posturing to show he will not yield but the interloper Demands a fight finally the dominant male is Victorious the Conqueror celebrates with a dung shower marking the border of the territory he has successfully defended while the vanquished suffers more than just the agony of defeat his back is carved open and by Sunset the crocodiles are watching closely they'd be unlikely to take on a bull in rude Health but now they Circle an expectation the hippo breathes his last the price of insurrection is life his Hulk will not go to waste the crocodiles move in swiftly to Feast on the corpse for these voracious Predators it's a considerable meal but one dead hippo is a mere snack compared with the annual Feast provided by a particular African river each year the serengetti vast grass Plains filled to the Horizon with grazing animals taking part in one of Nature's greatest spectacles around 1 and2 million wilder beast join 700,000 other herbivores on the Great Migration around 1 in six of these migrants will die before completing the 500 M circuit many are outrun and taken down down by Africa's formidable array of Savannah carnivores their Journey coming to a Grizzly end but one of the deadliest single obstacles the vast herds must Traverse is the mara River after 3 months on the move the wilderbeast are exhausted and emaciated all that separates them from the Fresh pastures of the msai mara is the width of the river and a whole bunch of huge ravit Nile crocodiles despite the chilling threat posed by these powerful Predators some of the herd are either oblivious to the danger or so thirsty they dare to take a drink anyway for an unlucky few it will be their last and these witless victims merely wet the Croc's appetite the true Feast begins when the first of the herd Braves the river in the crush and Chaos of the crossing the 16t Crocs grabs scores of victims when 1,600 lb of musc futile the marus Crocs survive on meager rations for most of the year so take full advantage of the great migrations time of Plenty they Gorge themselves eating up to half their body weight in one sitting and with so many different species crossing the river the banquet is as varied as it is Bountiful but not all Africa's Crocs have such an easy meal ticket on the banks of this Kenyon River a Croc has got too close to a pack of feeding Lions a move it's about to regret it's a fierce attack but the Crocs skin is covered in bony armor plating eventually the Lion's Uninvited Guest Retreats having taught the Crocs and dinner manners the big cats return to the carcass the Amazon is a giant of a river and and conceal some monstrous Predators which kill with a crush and in a bloody frenzy draining a lowland Basin of close to 3 million square miles around 1/5 of the water that runs off the earth's surface is carried by the Amazon this giant of a river is renowned for its oversized residence both prey and Predator around 4 ft long and and weighing as much as an adult human capibara are the world's largest rodent they're
By cacloaidongvat3 days ago in The Swamp
Iran and Israel: Dangerous Game.
Israel and Iran have been locked in a deadly duel for decades. Ever since Ayatollah Khomeini came to power in 1979, both nations have been at loggerheads. Israel did help Iran briefly, in the First Gulf War of 1980 - 1981. Iraq was a common enemy of Israel and Iran. Israel helped the Iranians with weapons. Sadly, that moment in history is a blip in an otherwise confrontational relationship.
By Nicholas Bishop6 days ago in The Swamp
Comments
There are no comments for this story
Be the first to respond and start the conversation.