Former President Donald Trump's legal troubles continue to unfold as his longtime confidant, Allen Weisselberg, pleaded guilty to two felony counts of perjury. The charges stem from false statements Weisselberg made during the New York attorney general's civil fraud investigation into the Trump Organization and his testimony at a trial last year.
Weisselberg's perjury involved misrepresenting the size of Trump's triplex apartment at Trump Tower, which had been inaccurately valued at 30,000 square feet on financial statements when it was actually just under 11,000 square feet. One of the false statements Weisselberg admitted to was denying he was present when Trump discussed the apartment's size, despite being there during a conversation with Forbes magazine reporters.
As part of his plea deal, Weisselberg will serve approximately five months at Rikers Island, adding to the hundred days he previously served for tax fraud charges in 2022. Despite pressure from prosecutors, Weisselberg is not cooperating against Trump and will not testify in the upcoming trial related to hush money payments, where he played a central role in the transactions involving Michael Cohen and Stormy Daniels.
Meanwhile, Trump's legal team is challenging Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, accusing him of prosecutorial misconduct for focusing on Weisselberg while allegedly ignoring potential charges against Cohen. Prosecutors maintain that Cohen's testimony is subject to cross-examination by Trump's attorneys during the trial, which is set to begin jury selection in three weeks.
