Tag

#tax-fraud

2 incidents

Grade 2 of 5: Major Abuse of Power

Trump Organization Convicted on 17 Counts of Criminal Tax Fraud

Weisselberg, the Trump Organization's CFO for decades, had pleaded guilty in August 2022 to 15 felony counts and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors. He testified against the company. Weisselberg received about $1.76 million in off-the-books compensation over 15 years that the company did not report as income. The company was convicted on all 17 counts, including scheme to defraud and falsifying business records. The $1.6 million fine was the maximum allowed but was a fraction of what corporate criminal fines typically run; prosecutors noted the fine was limited by statute.

Grade 1 of 5: Significant Democratic Concern

Hush-Money Scheme: Cohen's Guilty Plea Names Trump; Trump Convicted on 34 Counts (2024)

Cohen's guilty plea was not just his own conviction — it was Trump's implication. Cohen stated in federal court that the campaign finance crimes (the Daniels and McDougal payments) were committed 'in coordination with and at the direction of' a candidate for federal office. Federal prosecutors' filings repeated that the payments were made in coordination with and at the direction of 'Individual-1', understood to be Trump. Cohen was sentenced to 36 months; he served about a year in prison before release to home confinement in May 2020, and completed his sentence in November 2021. Trump was never charged federally over the payments; he was convicted on 34 state felony counts in May 2024 and received an unconditional discharge on January 10, 2025, and is appealing.