Former President Donald Trump has been indicted by a grand jury in New York in connection with a $130,000 payment to porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election, according to his lawyer who spoke to CNBC. Trump becomes the first former president to be charged with a crime. The indictment is the result of the Manhattan District Attorney’s investigation into how the Trump Organization recorded a reimbursement to Trump’s then-lawyer Michael Cohen after Cohen paid Daniels to keep quiet about an alleged sexual encounter she claims to have had with Trump in 2006.
Trump, who was filming his TV show “Celebrity Apprentice” at the time of the alleged incident, and was married to Melania Trump, who had just given birth to their son Barron, denies any wrongdoing. However, the Trump Organization listed the reimbursement to Cohen as a legal expense in their business records, which could be seen as falsifying business records, a misdemeanor under New York law that can be elevated to a felony if the misstatement was done to cover up another crime.
Trump’s criminal defense lawyer, Joseph Tacopina, confirmed the indictment to CNBC after several media outlets reported the news. Tacopina did not comment on the case. The indictment will be prosecuted by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Alvin Bragg’s office, and it could be the first of several criminal cases against Trump, who is also under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice in two separate cases.
Michael Cohen, who was involved in the payment to Daniels, said in a statement to NBC News that no one is above the law, not even a former President. He said that the indictment is not the end of the story, but rather the beginning, and that accountability matters. Cohen said that he stands by his testimony and the evidence he provided to the Manhattan district attorney.
Some peopel have said this situation where he is indicted is nothing more then a political stunt to make it so he cant run for president in 2024. The backlash from this is yet to be seen by his followers and supporters But we know this could be the begining of something much bigger.
