He spoke to prosecutors in the investigation into Michael Cohen, but hes the one who knows all about Trumps businesses.
Trump Organization finance chief Allen Weisselberg has been granted immunity in exchange for giving prosecutors information for the investigation into Donald Trumps former personal lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen and the hush money payments Cohen made to women during the 2016 presidential campaign.
The Trump Organization CFOs cooperation is the latest twist in the Manhattan US attorneys offices prosecution of Cohen, which began with an FBI raid in April. This week, Cohen pleaded guilty to eight federal charges, implicating the president of the United States in those crimes.
Weisselberg is perhaps not as visible a figure in Trumpworld as Cohen, but he might be even more important. Hes served as the Trump Organizations chief financial officer since 2000 so if anyone knows about the companys financials, its him.
Weisselberg was subpoenaed in the investigation into Cohen, though it hasnt been confirmed that he has actually appearedbefore a grand jury, according to the Wall Street Journal. He has met with prosecutors, but the information hes provided including whether Trump knew about thepayments to the women is still a question.
The raid on Cohen was often seen as the biggest legal threat to Trump, but Weisselberg talking might be an even bigger problem for the president. As the New Yorkers Adam Davidson, who has covered the Trump Organization extensively, predicted: Get ready for the Autumn of Allen Weisselberg.
Weisselberg knows where all the bodies are buried
Weisselberg has worked for the Trumps for decades; before joining the company, he worked for Donald Trumps father, Fred Trump. When Trump became president, he handed over the day-to-day control of the business to his two elder sons and Weisselberg.
The CFO had previously been linked to the hush money payment to Stormy Daniels, the porn actress who says she had an affair with Trump in 2006. The charging papers in Cohens appear to confirm the connection.
Weisselberg wasnt named in the charging papers, but hes listed as Executive-1, and he arranged a $420,000 reimbursement to Cohen, which included $130,000 Cohen sent to Daniels ahead of the November 2016 election to keep her quiet about her alleged affair with Trump. Weisselberg worked with another, unidentified, Trump Organization executive to make those payments, though its unclear if Weisselberg knew the purpose of the retainer to Cohen.
He was also named on a secretly recorded tape in September 2016, in whichCohen discusses a payoff to former Playboy model Karen McDougal. At one hard-to-decipher point in the tape, Cohen can be heard telling Trump that hes spoken to Allen Weisselberg about how to set the whole thing up
At the time of the tapes release last month, Alan Futerfas, an attorney for the Trump Organization, denied to the Washington Post that Weisselberg had any involvement in the payoff and was merely a bookkeeper who simply carries out directions from others about monetary payments and transfers.
But bookkeeper might be a bit of an undersell. Weisselberg, again, took control of the Trump Organization with the presidents two sons. He was also listed as the treasurer for the Trump Foundation, which was recently sued by the New York state attorney generals officefor violating state and federal laws. Weisselberg reportedly also did Trumps personal tax returns for at least some years.
Which means if theres something sketchy in Trumps finances, or the finances of the Trump Organization, Weisselberg likely knows about it. He is deeply familiar with the Trump Organizations financial housekeeping, Timothy L. OBrien, the author of TrumpNation, wrote in Bloomberg on Friday. Trump a man who rarely trusts anyone confided in Weisselberg and relied on him to sign off on details of the companys most significant deals.
A former Trump Organization employee told NBC reporter Katy Tur last month, after news of his subpoena broke, that Weisselberg knows where all financial bodies are buried within the Trump organization. He knows Trumps net worth. He knows any and every expenditure out of Trump Org was approved by Alan [sic].
And that might be of interest not just to prosecutors in the Southern District of New York but to special counsel Robert Mueller. Mueller has reportedly been interested in the finances and business activities of the Trump Organization, including a failed attempt to build a Trump Tower in Moscow. And Weisselberg might have some answers.
Trump Organization finance chief Allen Weisselberg has been granted immunity in exchange for giving prosecutors information for the investigation into Donald Trumps former personal lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen and the hush money payments Cohen made to women during the 2016 presidential campaign.
REALITY: [Paragraph 4]
Weisselberg was subpoenaed in the investigation into Cohen, though it hasnt been confirmed that he has actually appeared before a grand jury, according to the Wall Street Journal. He has met with prosecutors, but the information hes provided including whether Trump knew about the payments to the women is still a question.
It is unknown what Weisselberg may have said. It is unknown why he was granted immunity. He could have been granted immunity to force him to testify by taking away his fifth amendment defense.
Paragraph 1 is a bunch of speculation unsupported by the cited WSJ article.
Ryan would probably love to see Dip-Shit Donnie and his closeted gay companion mikey pence go down....(pun intended!!)
You can't possibly be serious, can you? Do you realize how loony the above sounds? (AND...I can't tell if you're pro-homo, anti-homo or "homophobic".)
Paul Ryan -- like many in Congress -- are quitting ASAP. Precisely because they will be connected to The Coups and the money & power behind the scene who actually OWN those politicians and their Congressional/Senate Seats.