Longtime chief financial officer (CFO) of the ex-US President Donald Trump’s Organization surrendered to authorities in New York to face state tax charges. A grand jury indicted him and his employer in the first criminal case against former President Donald Trump’s company.
Allen Weisselberg, 73, went through a freight entrance to avoid cameras awaiting his arrival at District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr.’s lower Manhattan office Thursday, one day after a grand jury indicted him and the company in an extraordinary challenge to the former president.
The exact charges he’s facing will be unsealed later in the day, but are expected to involve unpaid taxes on benefits extended to Weisselberg, according to a person familiar with the issue who asked not to be identified discussing confidential matters. Trump isn’t expected to be named in the charges, but they ratchet up the pressure on Weisselberg to cooperate against his boss.
Weisselberg’s cooperation could lead to a more expansive case against the company and raise the prospect of a historic and politically charged prosecution of a former president. With a trial unlikely before next year, Weisselberg will have months to decide whether to fight the charges or plead guilty and possibly strike a deal with prosecutors. A Trump executive for four decades, Weisselberg has unique insight into the former president’s finances and business deals.
