Allan Weisselberg testified Tuesday against his long-time employer’s company, The Trump Organization. The charge against the business was tax fraud. Indeed, Weisselberg corroborated important aspects of the Manhattan district attorney’s (DA) case against Donald Trump’s umbrella company.
The Trump Organization as a separate entity from Trump might face as much as a $1.6 million fine. The Rolling Stone reported:
‘Although Trump is not on trial, prosecutors have closely linked this alleged illegal activity to him. During opening statements on October 31, prosecutors said that from 2005 to 2017, “when most of the criminal conduct occurred,” these companies were “owned by Donald Trump.”’
Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Weissellberg was a fixture at the Trump Organization. The former CFO was also a co-trustee of the trust the former POTUS set up prior to taking office. Weisselberg worked for Trump’s father before the former president took over the family business.
Allen Weisselberg testified about taking $1.76 million in under-the-table perks from the Trump Organization after working there for almost half a century. That was part of his plea agreement. His agreement sentenced him to five months in Rikers Island prison if he “testified truthfully.” But should Weisselberg renege on his deal with the DA, he could go to prison for 15 years, which would virtually be a death sentence. As part of his agreement, the ex-CFO would not testify against the previous president.
Prosecutors questioned the man about whether he understood that he should have paid taxes on his compensation package. During his testimony, Weisselberg said that Trump urged his employee to move into a Riverside Drive apartment. The company paid for the apartment’s lease with a view of the Hudson River. His grandchildren went to an exclusive private school. And Trump gave Weisselberg the leases for two Mercedes-Benz cars, according to The POLITICO.
Certainly, Trump’s company benefitted from a deal with Weisselberg. The longtime employee had lived on Long Island, he testified:
‘He said it would help me be able to spend more time at the office rather than sitting on a train for three hours back and forth … and make my life easier.’
Again, the former CFO said that he understood that he had wrongly filed tax forms with “underreported” income. The “free” perks package helped Weisselberg and the Trump Organization. The perks virtually doubled his income.
Under further questioning by the DA, Weisselberg admitted that he held back information from the tax accountants, because he knew what he was doing was illegal:
‘They may not have wanted to sign my tax return and prepare my taxes.’
Interestingly enough, the Trump Organization employee not only kept his ties to the company, but he also has been drawing his six-figure salary. This even after he said he would testify against the company.
After he was charged, Trump’s employee resigned as CFO. However, Donald Trump kept the man on as a senior advisor working on nearly the same tasks as before. Then last month, the former advisor went on a “paid leave of absence at $640,000 per year.” Indeed, Weisselberg said he hoped to also get his regular $500,000 January bonus.
Normally, the employer and employee talked frequently:
‘[It was] usually on a daily basis. [After Trump became president] we’d discuss football to business transactions. We were working on things we wanted to do in the future. It ran the gamut.’
Then Trump’s employee added:
‘He had an open door policy.’
The Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg stayed in the courtroom as Weisselberg testified. The former CFO is expected to testify through Thursday.
The featured image is a screenshot via YouTube.
Christie writes Gloria Christie Reports & Three White Lions Substack newsletters and a Three White Lions podcast available on Apple, Spotify, etc. She is a political journalist for the liberal online newspaper The Bipartisan Report. Written in her own unique style with a twist of humor. Christie’s Mueller Report Adventures In Bite-Sizes a real-life compelling spy mystery (in progress). Find her here on Facebook. Or at Three White Lions her book on Amazon Kindle Vella and the Gloria Christie Three White Lions podcast on Apple, Spotify, etc.
