Manhattan DA showing evidence in Trump hush money case to grand jury: Report
Ryan King
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Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg is reportedly presenting evidence to a grand jury that hush money payments were allegedly made at the behest of former President Donald Trump.
Bragg’s office began presenting Monday to a grand jury that payments were allegedly made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to get her to stay quiet about an alleged affair during the 2016 campaign, possibly foreshadowing criminal or civil action against the former president, according to multiple reports.
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The grand jury was recently established and is believed to be mulling whether to issue charges against Trump, per the New York Times. Some of the evidence presented of Trump’s alleged involvement in the payments revolves around David Pecker, the former publisher of the National Enquirer, which allegedly helped cut the deal with Daniels, according to the report.
Prosecutors involved in the case have also reportedly contacted former associates of Trump’s 2016 campaign. The hush money payments helped spark the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office’s initial criminal inquiry of Trump in 2019 under Bragg’s predecessor, Cyrus Vance. However, the hush money tact was believed to have been put on the back burner for months as prosecutors homed in on Trump’s finances.
It emerged late last year that prosecutors were shifting their focus back to the hush money line of scrutiny. Trump’s former fixer, Michael Cohen, allegedly paid Daniels $130,000 to sign a nondisclosure agreement to stay quiet about an affair she had with Trump in the waning of the 2016 campaign. Cohen was later reimbursed by Trump and his business empire. He later entered a guilty plea with prosecutors over the alleged hush money payment.
Cohen has publicly confirmed that he’s met with Bragg’s office and could serve as a key witness in the Daniels saga.
In tandem with the Daniels line of inquiry, Bragg’s office is also eyeing potential insurance fraud by the Trump Organization, sources told the Wall Street Journal. Two former prosecutors that worked with Bragg’s office on the Trump inquiry have publicly disparaged Bragg for his reticence to target Trump in court for financial crimes.
One of those lawyers, Mark Pomerantz, is set to publish a book next month detailing his criticisms of the Trump inquiry. Bragg’s office reportedly contacted the publisher about concerns the book could hamper the ongoing investigation.
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Earlier this month, the Trump Organization was hit with the maximum fine for a tax fraud scheme prosecuted by Bragg’s office. Trump was not directly implicated in that case.
In addition to Bragg’s investigation, Trump is also weathering scrutiny from special counsel Jack Smith about the Mar-a-Lago classified document debacle as well as the Jan. 6 Capitol riot and the coinciding efforts to overturn the 2020 election. New York Attorney General Letitia James also unveiled a sweeping $250 million civil fraud case against the Trump business empire last September.
Trump hit the campaign trail in South Carolina this week in his first major blockbuster rally of the new year since he debuted his 2024 presidential campaign last November.