Allen Weisselberg, the Trump Organization’s longtime chief financial officer, pleaded not guilty to tax fraud and other charges Thursday — as lawyers for the company blasted the prosecution as a politically driven effort by Manhattan DA Cy Vance to target former President Donald Trump.
In addition to the tax fraud rap, Weisselberg, who prosecutors made a show of leading through the court hallway in handcuffs,was also hit with conspiracy, grand larceny and falsifying business records charges, prosecutors said in Manhattan Supreme Court.
Attorneys for the Trump Organization and the Trump Payroll Corp. also appeared in court and entered a not guilty plea on behalf of the companies.
Prosecutors charged the company and Weisselberg engaged in a 15-year tax fraud scheme to pay the CFO — a longtime Trump loyalist — and other executives at the company in “manner that was ‘off the books,’” according to an indictment unsealed soon after the court appearance.
via joemiller