New York prosecutors have criminalized two of former President Donald Trump's companies on fraud charges and convinced jurors they hoped to help the chief executive avoid taxes by placing some of his pay as a lien.
A New York County grand jury in Manhattan on Tuesday found the Trump Corporation and Trump Payroll Inc guilty on a combined 17 counts. The companies face fines of up to $1.6 million.
The former president has not been charged in the case and did not appear in court. One of his attorneys, Susan Nichols, said the evidence showed Trump was not involved in the related lawsuit.
Allen Weissenberg, a longtime Trump Organization executive director, is the only person charged with ties to the tax system. The 75-year-old former treasurer pleaded guilty in August under an agreement with prosecutors that would spare him up to 15 years in prison if convicted at trial. Instead, he only had to work 100 days after agreeing to testify against the two defendant companies.
Weissenberg's deputy, Jeffrey McCone, also testified after being granted immunity. He admitted to arranging paperwork that would have allowed the chief financial officer and other executives to avoid paying some of the taxes they would have paid, at the direction of Weissenberg.
