Former Trump, Allen Weisselberg CFO pleads guilty

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Weisselberg pleaded guilty to all 15 felonies that prosecutors in the Manhattan district attorney’s office accused him of and, in exchange, will be sentenced to 5 months in jail and 5 years probation, the New York Times reports

Allen Weisselberg, chief financial officer of Trump Organization Inc., center, departs from criminal court in New York, U.S., on on Monday, Sept. 20, 2021. Getting Donald Trump's longtime chief financial officer to turn on his boss may prove tough, as Weisselberg's unlikely to get a lengthy sentence even if convicted on tax fraud and other charges.

Longtime Trump Organization executive Allen Weisselberg pleaded guilty Thursday morning to tax fraud charges as part of a deal with prosecutors investigating a scheme allegedly orchestrated “by the most senior executives” of the company, outlets including The New York Times report.

Weisselberg pleaded guilty to all 15 charges charged by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office and will be sentenced to 5 months in prison and 5 years probation in exchange.

According to the New York Times, Weisselberg had declined to help prosecutors in their probe into Trump and his family, but his agreement requires him to testify about the plot in a future trial in the criminal case against the Trump Organization if called as a witness.

According to the indictment, Weisselberg and “others” at the Trump Organization devised a scheme to compensate themselves “in a manner that was ‘off the books: the beneficiaries of the scheme received substantial portions of their income through indirect and disguised means, with compensation that was unreported or misreported by the Trump Corporation or Trump Payroll Corp.”

According to the indictment, Weisselberg was “one of the major individual beneficiaries” of the scheme, receiving “indirect employee remuneration from the Trump Organization in the sum of $1.76 million.”

According to the complaint, Weisselberg and The Trump Organization failed to submit the complete amount to tax authorities.

Prosecutors claim that the Trump Organization paid for Weisselberg’s Riverside Boulevard apartment rent, electricity, garage charges, and his grandchildren’s tuition.

Weisselberg would have faced up to 15 years in prison if the plea deal had not been reached, according to the Times.
Weisselberg, the Trump Organization’s longstanding top financial officer, surrendered to authorities in June after prosecutors accused him of participating in the alleged tax fraud scheme.

Prosecutors contend in court documents acquired that Weisselberg dodged paying taxes on more than $1.7 million in income from the Trump Organization from 2005 through this year.
According to the Trump Organization, Weisselberg has worked with the company for 48 years. He most recently worked alongside Eric and Donald Trump Jr. to handle the business while their father was president.

Donald Trump, 76, has not been indicted, and his firm has slammed the Weisselberg case as part of a smear campaign against him.

Still, now that he is no longer in office, the former president faces a growing number of legal issues, including a new long-running investigation into the Trump Organization started by New York Attorney General Letitia James’ state office.

The inquiries have focused on whether the Trump Organization undervalued or overpriced its property in order to acquire loans and more advantageous tax benefits.

According to a now-public search, Trump is also facing litigation regarding his efforts to reverse the 2020 election results in his favor, as well as an investigation into whether he allegedly obstructed justice and violated the Espionage Act.