The longtime chief financial officer for the Trump Organization, who pleaded guilty to 15 counts of tax evasion-related crimes and is currently serving a five-month sentence, may have flipped on his boss, former president Donald Trump.
Allen Weisselberg previously refused to rat out his boss and testify against Trump in the tax scheme trial. Now, WNBC is reporting that his two attorneys, who were paid by the Trump organization, have been dropped.
The former chief assistant district attorney of the Manhattan D.A.’s office, Karen Agnifilo, told MSNBC there could be two reasons why this happened. One of those is that “the case is over and doesn’t need lawyers anymore.” The other reason is a bit more stark, with Agnifilo saying, “More likely, is there was this pressure campaign put on him saying while he’s in Rikers, ‘Do you like being there? Because we’re about to bring other charges.'”
In fact, Agnifilo said Weisselberg may have already testified before a grand jury in the ongoing hush-money payment probe to adult film star Stormy Daniels. Trump said he would be arrested last Tuesday in the case (he was not) and called for people to protest. Very few did.
While, yes, it could mean that Weisselberg flipped, former U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance said it’s not certain and there are other possibilities.
She also said that having Weisselberg as a witness “would certainly buttress” the DA’s case against Trump. Former U.S. Attorney Harry Litman thinks that a flip is the best explanation for the activity.
The grand jury being used in the case, which hears witness testimony behind doors, will reportedly not hear any evidence until next month. This could mean they’re shoring up their case with new information from Weisselberg, who’s currently staying in one of the most notorious prisons in the United States: Rikers Island. Weisselberg was given five months for running the tax schemes, and according to Insider, he was put in the safest area of the prison where he’s allowed to use hot water and share a hot pot — something prohibited in other parts of the prison.
There are conflicting reports about whether a flip actually took place, too. The Daily Beast said it spoke to a source that said one of the lawyers, Nick Gravante, wasn’t let go because of a change in allegiance but because he made the Trump organization uncomfortable as he cooperated with prosecutors to get Weisselberg the best deal. Another Trump attorney, Susan Necheles, said that wasn’t true and that Weisselberg dumped Gravante on his own.
“Mr. Weisselberg’s decision to change lawyers was entirely his own, a decision which I understand Mr. Weisselberg made in consultation with his family after the conclusion of the trial,” she said.
So where does that leave us? A big “maybe,” but if the reports are true and Weisselberg really did defect, things aren’t looking great for Trump. We’ll keep you posted.