Two Trump attorneys have been told he can testify before a grand jury next week for an investigation into hush money paid to a woman who said she slept with the former president.
Defense attorneys said Thursday that Trump had not been subpoenaed and was not forced to appear in a Manhattan DA’s investigation. They didn’t indicate whether he would testify.
According to sources, as reported Thursday by the New York Times, Trump is expected to appear before a grand jury next week. The district attorney’s office has informed Trump’s lawyers that charges may be filed against him. According to NBC News, it was not disclosed that Trump’s attorneys would file charges.
A statement posted Thursday night on Trump’s Truth Social site said he “did absolutely nothing wrong.”
Trump’s spokesperson blasted the district attorney’s office earlier, calling any potential indictment politically motivated.
“It is insane that the Manhattan District Attorney is threatening to indict President Trump.” “The DA’s office has been on a Witch Hunt for the past five years, investigating the entire Trump family, and they have come up empty at every turn — and now this.” “After an intensive investigation, the DA is even considering launching a new political attack, which exonerates the president.”
“It would be easy for the Manhattan district attorney to dismiss the case without inviting Mr. Trump to testify,” said Rosenberg, a former federal prosecutor.
In January, NBC News reported that prosecutors in New York had convened a grand jury to investigate allegations about hush money paid to adult film star Stormy Daniels.
In a 2018 tweet, Trump said the money transfer was to “stop the false and extortionist accusations made by Daniels about an affair.” He has also said the money was a “private contract.”
Cohen, Trump’s former attorney, admitted to paying Daniels illegally to influence the 2016 presidential election, claiming Trump directed him.
Last month, Cohen told Manhattan prosecutors that he had surrendered his phone to Bragg’s office as evidence of the hush money payment.
In 2021, Alvin Bragg took over the district attorney’s office and the investigation into the Trump payment, which had been ongoing for many years.
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Earlier this year, prosecutors said that top Trump executives orchestrated a 15-year tax fraud scheme, and a jury found that the Trump Organization was guilty of all charges. Trump wasn’t involved.
The Trump Organization’s business practices were investigated by New York Attorney General Letitia James last year. Trump frequently invoked the Fifth Amendment during the four-hour deposition, a source with knowledge of the deposition said. Trump invoked the Fifth more than 440 times during the deposition.
Donald Trump is not the only figure involved in the hush-money investigation.
Attorney General Jack Smith oversees the Justice Department’s investigation of the Jan. 6 riot and a criminal investigation of Trump’s possible mishandling of classified information.
According to the foreperson of a Georgia special grand jury, over a dozen people, whose names have not been released, were recommended for indictment as part of the investigation into whether Trump’s allies tried to interfere with the state’s 2020 election results.
The foreperson said, “There are names that you will recognize and names that you might not.”
