A New York grand jury has handed down a massive indictment against former US President Donald Trump, charging him with 34 felony counts related to his alleged involvement in a hush money payment scheme. The charges stem from Trump's efforts to silence adult film actress Stormy Daniels after she claimed to have had an affair with him before the 2016 presidential election.
According to the unsealed indictment and accompanying statement of facts, released by prosecutors Tuesday, Trump is accused of participating in four separate felony payments to Daniels' lawyer, Michael Cohen, totaling $850,000. These payments were allegedly made in exchange for her silence on the alleged affair and to help his re-election campaign.
Prosecutors claim that Trump was aware that Cohen would use these funds for illicit purposes, including making the hush money payments, and that he had direct control over the flow of money from the Trump Organization into accounts used for the payments. The indictment also alleges that Trump's personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, made these arrangements without his knowledge or consent.
The statement of facts accompanying the indictment reveals more details about the payment scheme, including a $130,000 payment to Daniels and her husband, as well as three other payments totaling around $720,000, all made through various shell companies linked to the Trump Organization.
As part of the charges, prosecutors are seeking prison time for Cohen, who is already serving a sentence related to his involvement in the hush money scheme. The indictment also targets several close associates of Trump's, including former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and former Fox News host Roger Stone, both of whom have previously cooperated with investigators.
Trump has denied any wrongdoing, calling the charges "politically motivated" and claiming that the payments were made as part of a legitimate attempt to support his re-election campaign. The indictment and statement of facts mark another significant development in Trump's ongoing legal struggles following his departure from office.
According to the unsealed indictment and accompanying statement of facts, released by prosecutors Tuesday, Trump is accused of participating in four separate felony payments to Daniels' lawyer, Michael Cohen, totaling $850,000. These payments were allegedly made in exchange for her silence on the alleged affair and to help his re-election campaign.
Prosecutors claim that Trump was aware that Cohen would use these funds for illicit purposes, including making the hush money payments, and that he had direct control over the flow of money from the Trump Organization into accounts used for the payments. The indictment also alleges that Trump's personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, made these arrangements without his knowledge or consent.
The statement of facts accompanying the indictment reveals more details about the payment scheme, including a $130,000 payment to Daniels and her husband, as well as three other payments totaling around $720,000, all made through various shell companies linked to the Trump Organization.
As part of the charges, prosecutors are seeking prison time for Cohen, who is already serving a sentence related to his involvement in the hush money scheme. The indictment also targets several close associates of Trump's, including former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort and former Fox News host Roger Stone, both of whom have previously cooperated with investigators.
Trump has denied any wrongdoing, calling the charges "politically motivated" and claiming that the payments were made as part of a legitimate attempt to support his re-election campaign. The indictment and statement of facts mark another significant development in Trump's ongoing legal struggles following his departure from office.
like what even was going on back then?? I remember my grandma talking about it in school and how she thought it was all so shady 
. Anyway, as a student I gotta say its kinda weird that Trump's trying to play it cool but the evidence is just piling up against him 
. The part about Cohen making those payments without his knowledge is wild too - like why would anyone do that?! 
Guess this indictment will make for some interesting reading material during our next study group 
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. I mean, he's always been a master manipulator, so it's not like this comes as a shock... wait, no, actually, I thought for sure he'd get off scot-free 
. I mean, the guy's got a reputation for being a bit of a wild card, but who knew he'd go this far? 
. But at the same time, can we really trust the prosecution on this one? Maybe Trump is just trying to get back at them for all the times they've been poking around his camp 
. Ugh, I don't know what's going on anymore 
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! I feel like we're living in a real-life episode of Billions 
, but instead of just financial crimes, it's the former Prez himself, Donald Trump 
. 34 felony counts? That's some serious drama 
. I'm not surprised that his team is saying it's "politically motivated" - it feels like they're trying to deflect from the fact that he allegedly broke the law 
. The fact that his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, is already serving a sentence and now so are some of his associates? That just shows how deep this goes 
. I hope justice is served on all sides - the public deserves to know what really went down during Trump's presidency 
that's just crazy talk 
. It's crazy that someone with as much power as Trump thought they could get away with paying hush money to keep a secret about an alleged affair 
. The fact that he allegedly had no idea where the money was going, but still funneled it through accounts linked to his organization... just mind-blowing 
. Fingers crossed that justice is served on all those involved 
and now they're throwing cohen's name around too... not that he didn't deserve it, but ugh. this just keeps getting more and more cringeworthy by the day 
. I'm not sure what's more surprising - the fact that he's facing felony charges or the fact that he still thinks we're gonna believe him 
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and now it seems like the system is finally catching up to him.
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i mean who didnt pay hush money 2 keep quiet about some shady deal 
Like, come on, we all know how politics works. You pay people off to keep quiet? That's not a campaign strategy, that's a dirty trick 
Justice should be served, especially when it comes to something like this where the law is clear and everyone involved knew what they were doing 
. And what's crazy is how many people got caught in this mess - from Michael Cohen to Paul Manafort and even Roger Stone... it just goes to show that you can't hide forever 
. The fact that Trump's trying to say it was all a setup doesn't really fly either, especially since he allegedly had direct control over the money flow and knew what the payments were for 
... What's next? Is it going to be like "oh, sorry Donald, I didn't know you were involved in this" 
? No one should be above the law, not even a former president 
i feel bad for michael cohen though, hes already taking a hit and now hes got these felony charges too...its like his life is a never-ending cycle of drama...anyway, its gonna be interesting to see how this all plays out, especially with paul manafort and roger stone involved...the politics are getting so complicated