Malouf: Weisselberg would spend the rest of his life in prison 2:10
New York (CNN) -
Federal prosecutors in New York came to suspect that the Trump Organization's chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg, lied in his testimony during the investigation of former Trump personal attorney Michael Cohen three years ago, according to four people familiar with it. with the thinking of the prosecutors.
Despite their suspicions, federal prosecutors did not file perjury charges against Weisselberg, but his past interactions with them may now be relevant to the Manhattan district attorney's office as it seeks their cooperation in a tax fraud case brought against Weisselberg and the company last month.
5 keys to the accusation of the Trump Organization and Allen Weisselberg
As that investigation progresses, all eyes are on whether Weisselberg could rebel against his former boss, former President Donald Trump.
But as federal prosecutors previously learned, any help from Weisselberg could have pros and cons.
Weisselberg has already denied wrongdoing in the tax fraud investigation and with respect to everything related to the Cohen case.
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Weisselberg's role in the Cohen investigation
In 2018, federal prosecutors for the Manhattan District Attorney's Office indicted Cohen, in part for his role in paying money to silence women who claimed to have had affairs with Trump (he has denied them).
In the course of the investigation, prosecutors granted limited immunity to Weisselberg, who was involved in the company's effort to reimburse Cohen for the hush money payments, a matter that also came under scrutiny by the U.S. government's office. Manhattan district attorney.
Michael Cohen presents evidence that Trump allegedly reimbursed him money
But federal prosecutors ended up questioning his decision to give Weisselberg immunity, according to people familiar with the matter.
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After suspecting that Weisselberg lied in his testimony, prosecutors weighed whether they should press charges of perjury and, according to a person familiar with the matter, also explored whether they could lift his immunity.
Prosecutors were skeptical of Weisselberg's testimony, particularly his description of how the company reimbursed Cohen, and classified it on the company's books as legal expenses, two people familiar with the investigation said.
Weisselberg was not the only Trump Organization official whose testimony was questioned by prosecutors, according to one of these people.
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When prosecutors finally indicted Cohen, they noted in the documents that, with respect to the reimbursements, "the company accounted for these payments as legal expenses," but the invoices Cohen submitted "were not related to any legal services that he provided in 2017. ".
One obstacle prosecutors face in prosecuting perjury cases is proving that the information was false and that the individual knew it was false when he testified.
In the spring of 2019, the Department of Justice's Office of Legal Counsel drafted a memorandum challenging the enforcement of campaign finance charges by Manhattan federal prosecutors in the Cohen case, The New York reported. Times, a move that was seen by some in the Manhattan office as an effort to quash any search for similar charges against anyone else involved in the episode.
Others in the office, however, did not believe Weisselberg was vulnerable to such charges, according to a person familiar with the investigation.
In the end, prosecutors decided not to strip Weisselberg of his immunity or prosecute him.
If Weisselberg had his taxes clean, he would not have been charged, says lawyer
A spokesman for the US attorney's office in Manhattan declined to comment.
A Weisselberg attorney, Mary Mulligan, said: "Allen fully cooperated in the US Attorney's extensive investigation. The US Attorney for the Southern District of New York charged Michael Cohen with campaign finance and tax violations, and then closed their investigation ago. more than two years".
The Manhattan district attorney's investigation
The Manhattan District Attorney's current investigation into Weisselberg grew out of an investigation by federal prosecutors regarding how the Trump Organization reimbursed Cohen for silence money payments, an investigation that continued after Cohen pleaded guilty in 2018 to charges including campaign finance offenses related to payments.
It is unclear whether federal prosecutors informed the Manhattan district attorney's office that they believed Weisselberg lied in his testimony in his case.
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In a July 2019 court filing, federal prosecutors informed the Cohen judge that the Manhattan District Attorney's Office had "effectively concluded its investigations into (1) who, other than Michael Cohen, was involved in and may be criminally responsible for the two campaign funding violations to which Cohen pleaded guilty "and whether certain individuals" made false statements, gave false testimony or otherwise obstructed justice in connection with this investigation. "
Weisselberg was among the people the office investigated for such behavior, according to a person familiar with the matter.
In the case of the Manhattan District Attorney, Weisselberg and the Trump Organization itself have been charged with an alleged 15-year tax scheme dating back to 2005 "to compensate Weisselberg and other executives of the Trump Organization in a way 'outside of the books'".
The prosecution focused heavily on Weisselberg.
In the months leading up to the indictments, district attorneys repeatedly sought his cooperation as a possible way to bring the investigation closer to Trump himself.
The investigation is ongoing.
Prosecutors are investigating, among other things, whether the Trump Organization misled insurers and lenders by inflating the value of certain properties in financial statements.
ANALYSIS |
Accusations from his organization and a top executive put Trump's lucky life to the test
If Weisselberg tried to cooperate with the Manhattan district attorney's investigation, he would be required to be truthful in his testimony or face the threat of prosecution for perjury, in addition to the other alleged crimes for which he is being prosecuted.
Trump companies would be indicted for tax offenses 0:52
Before being charged, Weisselberg indicated to the prosecutor's office that he had no intention of cooperating, and has not appeared to change his position since he was charged.
Weisselberg and the Trump Organization have pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Allen Weisselberg Michael Cohen