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Prosecutors resumed their final argument this Friday in the criminal trial for tax fraud of the Trump Organization, after exclaiming that former President Donald Trump “knew exactly what was going on with his top executives” and promised to share more details of the case where defense attorneys pointed directly to CFO Allen Weisselberg.
“Donald Trump knew exactly what was going on with his top executives”, Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Joshua Steinglass exclaimed to the jury during the first half of his closing argument, later adding, “We’ll come back to that later,” The Associated Press reported. summarize the case against the former president’s company.
Two entities of the Trump Organization, Trump Corporation and Trump Payroll Corporation, are accused of helping executives avoid paying income taxes on company-paid benefits like Manhattan apartments and cars luxury.
Steinglass’s statement about the former president made the defense attorney Alan Futerfas to express his concern outside the presence of the jury, sharing that the jurors had been told from the beginning that the criminal trial did not personally involve Trump.
Prosecutors argue that the Trump Organization is responsible because two executives involved in the scheme, longtime chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg and controller Jeffrey McConney, were “senior management” agents charged with acting on behalf of the company and their various entities.
Notably, Susan Necheles, who represents a unit of the Trump Organization, pointed directly to Allen Weisselberg, the CFO: “We are here today for one reason only: Allen Weisselberg’s greed. The purpose of his crimes was to benefit Mr. Weisselberg,” he argued during his statements.
The defense has alleged that Weisselberg masterminded the tax evasion scheme on his own without Trump or the Trump family knowing, and that the company did not benefit from its actions. Weisselberg testified that Trump didn’t know, but that the Trump Organization got some benefit because he didn’t have to pay him as much in real wages.
“They can’t use this as sword and shield,” Steinglass pointed out, responding to repeated objections from the defense. “You cannot try to exonerate someone who is not on trial and not allow me the opportunity to respond.”
The tax fraud case is the only trial to emerge from the three-year investigation of Trump and his business practices by the Manhattan district attorney’s office. The company has denied wrongdoing.
With information from AP and ABC News
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