Allen Weisselberg, a former Trump executive, has been sentenced to five months in jail in relation to a tax fraud scheme that last year led to the conviction of the Trump Organization.
The businessman, who was known to be one of the former president's most loyal lieutenants, will spend nearly half a year at the Rikers Island jail complex. The sentence was handed down by a state court judge after the 75-year-old, who worked for the Trump family for the past half-century, testified as the prosecution's star witness at the trial of the Trump Organization.
Tax Fraud Scheme
Weisselberg worked as the company's chief financial officer and had been facing years in prison in connection with the case. Under a plea deal, he agreed to testify truthfully in exchange for a punishment that, with good behavior, might last no more than 100 days.
However, Nicholas A. Gravante Jr., Weisselberg's lawyer, pleaded with the judge in State Supreme Court in Manhattan on Tuesday. He wanted the judge to impose a lighter sentence on his client, citing the former Trump executive's military service, lack of a criminal record, and the many hours that he spent with prosecutors preparing for the testimony, as per the New York Times.
Gravante said that each month would make a difference when you are a 75-year-old individual who has been sentenced to prison. However, Judge Juan Merchan rejected the defense's request, arguing that had he not promised the sentence of five months in August, the evidence at trial would have prompted him to impose a significantly longer sentence.
Weisselberg will be assigned initially to the North Infirmary Command, which is a jail on Rikers Island that houses individuals with serious medical conditions as well as a portion of the general population.
After the hearing concluded, the former Trump executive, who was seen wearing an olive North Face jacket and dark sneakers, hugged his lawyer and was placed in handcuffs by court officers and taken into custody. District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg was inside the courtroom for the sentencing and sat near the back with a sober expression on his face.
Trump Organization
According to the Associated Press, Weisselberg was convicted for dodging taxes on $1.7 million in job perks, causing the judge to call his sentence too lenient for a case "driven entirely by greed."
Judge Merchan said that he was especially appalled by Weisselberg's testimony where the former Trump executive gave his wife a $6,000 check for a no-show job so that she could qualify for Social Security benefits.
The judge promised a five-month sentence when Weisselberg agreed to plead guilty to 15 tax crimes and to be a witness against the Trump Organization. Merchan said that he was not going to deviate from the promise but noted that he believed a stiffer sentence was warranted after he heard the evidence.
The Trump Organization was convicted for paying the personal expenses of some executives without reporting them as income. The company also compensated its high-ranking officials as independent contractors instead of full-time employees, ABC News reported.
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