CFO of Trump Organization Pleads Not Guilty 2:34
(CNN) -
On Thursday, New York prosecutors accused the Trump Organization and its chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg, of executing an alleged 15-year tax plan designed "to compensate Weisselberg and other Trump Organization executives in a way that it was 'off the books' ”.
It is the first criminal case against former President Donald Trump's company, one that he has ridiculed as impeachment.
This is what you should know about the prosecution:
The charges
The crux of the alleged plan is that the company provided additional benefits, or perks, to executives, including Weisselberg, as part of its income, but did not pay the required payroll taxes on those benefits.
Meanwhile, the beneficiaries did not report them as income and therefore did not pay income taxes.
ANALYSIS |
Accusations from his organization and a top executive put Trump's lucky life to the test
Weisselberg reportedly received a wide range of benefits
In addition to his direct compensation from the company, Weisselberg received rent for an Upper West Side apartment, utilities and garage expenses paid by the Trump Organization, according to the indictment.
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He and his wife each received a leased Mercedes-Benz.
He received nearly $ 30,000 in cash over a six-year period to pay for personal vacation extras.
She received new beds, flat-screen TVs, rugs, and furniture for her Florida home.
Trump himself was not charged, but is referenced to
According to the indictment, Weisselberg received benefits including $ 359,058 in tuition payments to Columbia Grammar & Preparatory School for two of his grandchildren.
Those payments were made with checks from Donald Trump's account signed by Trump himself, and later from the Donald J. Trump revocable trust, according to the indictment.
The payments for Weisselberg's grandchildren were "indirect compensation" and were not included on Weisselberg's W-2 forms, and no Trump Organization or Trump Payroll Corp. income taxes were withheld on the tuition payments.
No other individuals were charged Thursday.
The Trump Organization, an entity called Trump Payroll Corp. and Weisselberg were indicted Thursday - 10 charges brought against the companies and 15 against Weisselberg.
But no other person has been charged as part of the district attorney's investigation.
The charges refer to an uncharged co-conspirator, who the indictment describes as a person who helped Weisselberg evade taxes.
«From at least 2005 to the date of this indictment, the named defendants and others, including the un-accused co-conspirator # 1, agreed to and implemented a compensation plan in order to allow Weisselberg to underreport their income to federal authorities, and therefore evaded taxes and falsely claimed federal tax refunds to which he was not entitled, "says the indictment.
A person familiar with the investigation told CNN that the uncharged co-conspirator is Jeff McConney, the longtime controller of the Trump Organization.
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The investigation is not over
The Manhattan district attorney's office has emphasized that the investigation is ongoing.
The prosecution focuses primarily on Weisselberg, whose prosecutors have spent months trying to secure his cooperation, to no avail.
Weisselberg pleaded not guilty Thursday, but if he changed his mind and decided to help prosecutors, they could use his testimony and evidence to go after others.
Additionally, prosecutors have explored a wide range of issues over the course of their more than two years of investigation and could add additional charges in the future in what is known as a substitute indictment.
CNN's Sonia Moghe and Kara Scannell contributed to this report.
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