The Manhattan district attorney’s office is weighing new charges against former Trump Organization chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg if he doesn’t cooperate with its investigation of former President Trump, the New York Times reported Friday.
Weisselberg was released from jail on April 19. He was sentenced in January to five months at Rikers Island for his role in a decades-long tax fraud scheme, following his testimony as New York state’s star witness against the former President’s real estate company. However, the 75-year-old was eligible for release after 100 days with time off for good behavior.
Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg’s threat of new charges against Weisselberg comes after Bragg charged the former President on April 4 with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records and conspiracy over hush money payments he made to at least two women in the lead-up to the 2016 presidential election.
So far, Weisselberg has refused to roll on his former boss, but Manhattan prosecutors have recently ramped up pressure, warning his lawyers that if their client refuses to testify, they may bring perjury charges against him, according to Times sources.
Those potential charges would stem from statements Weisselberg made under oath while being interviewed by New York State Attorney General Letitia James. Separate from Bragg’s investigation, she is is suing Trump, his companies and its officers including three of Trump’s adult children, over allegations of bank, tax and insurance fraud.
It was not clear which part of that interview Bragg is targeting as containing alleged false statements by Weisselberg. But if the former Trump CFO refuses to cooperate, he could face a number of new charges. Along with weighing whether to charge Weisselberg with inflating numbers on Trump’s financial statements, prosecutors have indicated that they’re considering unrelated charges of insurance fraud against him.
An attorney for Weisselberg, an attorney for Trump, and a spokesperson for Bragg all declined to comment on the Times’ reporting.
