Legal Issues

Weisselberg Takes the Stand In Trump Criminal Trial, Discusses Tax Scheme's End

Weisselberg Takes the Stand In Trump Criminal Trial, Discusses Tax Scheme's End

Ex-Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg, 75, took the stand yesterday in the company's ongoing criminal tax trial.

Credit: Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

Weisselberg -- who turned state's witness in August in exchange for a plea deal that includes prison time -- reportedly fought back tears on the stand as he was questioned about breaking the trust of the Trump family, whom he worked for for nearly 50 years. 

USA Today shared details from the courtroom:

"Mr. Weisselberg, did you honor the trust that was placed in you?" asked [defense attorney Alan] Futerfas.

Weisselberg conceded he did not.

"And you did it for your own personal gain?" asked the defense lawyer.

"I did," said Weisselberg.

"Are you embarrassed by what you did?" asked Futerfas.

"More than you can imagine," said Weisselberg.

Credit: Scott Wilder/Getty Images

CNN noted that Weisselberg did acknowledge that the tax scheme ended when Donald Trump took office as President of the United States. 

Last week, CNN also reported that Trump Organization Controller Jeffrey. McConney testified about the specific process that resulted in him tacking on fringe benefits to salaries and bonuses at the direction of high-level company officials.  

McConney, who previously implicated already-sentenced former Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg, reiterated that Weisselberg and others directed him to skirt tax laws. 

Per CNN's report, McConney also confirmed that he was instructed to cut bonus checks via 1099 tax forms -- these forms are meant for independent contractors who withhold their own taxes. The executives who received their bonuses in this fashion did not report the money as income on their personal taxes, taking the bonuses tax-free for multiple years. 

In addition, McConney was asked about the Weisselberg apartment on Central Park -- where the family paid shockingly low monthly rent of just $1,000. He confirmed that part of the rent was paid by the Trump Organization as a fringe benefit without reporting it to the IRS or the State of New York. 

Although former President Donald Trump is not himself named in the ongoing criminal trial, he has been facing an onslaught of his own legal problems following the January 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol. 

Credit: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

The businessman's Mar-a-Lago property in Florida was the subject of a now-infamous Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) raid on August 8 and, per Bloomberg, the businessman "invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination on Wednesday [August 10] to avoid answering deposition questions in a civil probe of his family real estate business by New York Attorney General Letitia James."

Trump recently came under fire for falsely accusing past Presidents George H.W. Bush and Barack Obama of keeping classified documents, as well. 

All of this is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the Trump family's legal woes right now. Letitia James and her office have officially filed a $250 million civil suit against Trump, and the former President is also the subject of an ongoing 2020 election fraud probe in Georgia.

What do you think about Weisselberg's testimony in the Trump trial?

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Rebekah Barton

Rebekah Barton

Rebekah's search engine optimization career began completely by accident as a college student. Over the course of her career so far, she has "grown up" with the SEO industry, from writing content while juggling classes to managing her own teams of writers and overseeing SEO strategy in subsequent roles. She is excited to bring her passion for high-quality content to CountingWorks, Inc.

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