Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr's sweeping indictment of Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg reveals the lavish perks that the executive is accused of failing to report to tax authorities.
The 15-count indictment unveiled on Thursday charged Weisselberg, who has worked for Donald Trump for 48 years, with tax fraud, falsifying business records, and grand larceny.
Most of the charges stem from an alleged $1.76 million in 'off the books' benefits which the indictment claims Weisselberg received since 2005, including rent for a Manhattan apartment, lease payments for two Mercedes-Benz vehicles and private school tuition for family members, with Trump signing some tuition checks himself.
Prosecutors said it was a scheme that allowed Weisselberg to evade some $900,000 in taxes and recoup roughly $130,000 in undeserved tax refunds.
Weisselberg, who was paraded into court handcuffed by Vance's investigators, has pleaded not guilty, and Trump issued a statement calling the charges a 'political Witch Hunt by the Radical Left Democrats'.
Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg leaves court after pleading not guilty. Weisselberg surrendered this morning to the Manhattan district attorney's office
Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr (above) accuses Weisselberg of failing to report lavish perks he received in lieu of income
The indictment also charged the Trump Organization with conspiring with Weisselberg in the alleged scheme, but did not name other individuals accused of wrongdoing.
Vance's investigation, which had now gone on for more than three years, is ongoing, and in recent months he has teamed up with New York Attorney General Letitia James. Both are Democrats.
The various schemes alleged in the indictment include:
$1,174,018 in untaxed income used to pay Weisselberg's rent $359,058 in unreported compensation for private school fees $196,245 in untaxed income for Mercedes Benz leases $29,400 in under-the-table cash used to pay holiday tips Vance accuses Trump Org of paying Weisselberg's rent under the tableProsecutors say that from 2011 through 2018, Weisselberg's compensation was fixed at $940,000, to be comprised of $540,000 in base salary and $400,000 in end-of-year bonus.
But the indictment alleges that the Trump Organization regularly compensated Weisselberg with side perks, and then reduced the amount of his official pay by the same amount, allowing him to skirt income taxes.
'During the period of the scheme, Weisselberg thereby evaded approximately $556,385 in federal taxes, approximately $106,568 in state taxes, and approximately $238,159 in New York City taxes, and he falsely claimed and received approximately $94,902 in federal tax refunds and approximately $38,222 in state tax refunds, to which he was not entitled,' the indictment says.
According to the indictment, the Trump Organization has been paying the rent for Weisselberg's luxury Manhattan apartment since 2005.
According to the indictment, the Trump Organization has been paying the rent for Weisselberg's luxury Manhattan apartment in the former Trump Place since 2005
Allen's wife Hilary Weisselberg (above) lives with him in the company-subsidized apartment, prosecutors said
'Beginning on or about March 31, 2005, the Trump Corporation maintained a lease for an apartment on Riverside Boulevard in New York, New York,' the indictment says.
'The building, one of several buildings on the West Side of Manhattan previously known as 'Trump Place,' was not owned by the Trump Organization, and the Trump Organization paid rent pursuant to the lease,' it adds.
Prosecutors say that Weisselberg and his spouse were the sole residents of the apartment and used it as their permanent residence.
Though the indictment does not specify the amount of the apartment's rent, three-bedroom apartments in the complex are currently listing for $11,500 a month.
Prosecutors say that Weisselberg used checks drawing on Trump Organization accounts to pay the monthly rent, as well as his electricity, telephone, internet, cable, and parking garage fees.
The indictment says that from the tax year 2005 through 2017, the Trump Organization provided Weisselberg approximately $1,174,018 in untaxed income by paying his rent and related expenses.
Subsequently, as in the other alleged schemes, Weisselberg's compensation was reduced by an equivalent amount to the rental fees, allowing him to avoid taxes on that portion of unreported income, according to the indictment.
Weisselberg 'skipped out on NYC taxes by falsely reporting his residence'New York City is one of
