The 75-year-old Allen H. Weisselberg, a longtime executive for Donald Trump and the CFO of the Trump Organization, was sentenced to five months of prison for his role in a 15-year tax fraud scheme at the Trump Organization. He served as the prosecution witness in the criminal trial of the former president’s real estate company. Weisselberg pleaded guilty in August 2022, admitting that he and other executives received bonuses and perks that saved the company and themselves money.
Under a plea deal, Allen H. Weisselberg agreed to testify truthfully in exchange for a punishment that, with good behavior, might last no more than 100 days. He is expected to be sent to New York’s notorious Rikers Island jail, a correction facility known for violence, drugs, and corruption. Nineteen inmates there died last year.
In Manhattan, you have to play by the rules no matter who you are or who you work for.
District attorney Alvin L. Bragg
The sentence was imposed by Justice Juan Merchan in a New York state court in Manhattan, who oversaw the trial of the Trump Organization, which was convicted in December on all counts it faced. Though no longer CFO, Weisselberg remains on paid leave from the Trump Organization.
Weisselberg already paid New York authorities more than $2 million in taxes, penalties, and interest that he owed after reaping lavish off-the-books perks from Trump and his company. The Trump Organization was convicted on all 17 counts of tax fraud and other financial crimes and will be sentenced on Friday. It faces up to $1.6 million in penalties.
