NY Times Report Says Flipping Exec is Possible

Prosecutors in an ongoing, sweeping investigation into Donald Trump and the Trump Organization, conducted by the Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr., have subpoenaed the personal bank records of Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg, 73.

Vance and his team's sweeping investigation focuses upon claims that Trump personally and with his corporation received bank loans and tax benefits by purposefully manipulating property values.

The new focus on Weisselberg seems to indicate the investigation is including what payments and gifts Trump may have paid the CFO, as the New York Times discussed in a recent article published on March 31, 2021.

The Times report proposes that prosecutors are focused on Weisselberg to try to cut a deal with the executive to cooperate in the far-reaching Trump investigation.

Weisselberg is a long-time employee for both Donald and father Fred Trump in the Trump Organization.

Vance's team is looking into the hush-money secret payments made to two women who claimed to have had sexual affairs with Trump, who has been married to Melania Trump since 2005.

Trump denies any sexual relationships with the two women.

Besides the hush-money investigation, prosecutors are looking into possible bank and insurance frauds, including numerous potential real estate value manipulations.

In March, Vance was allowed to obtain Donald Trump's tax returns plus financial records from the past eight years. The decision to allow the release of Trump's long-hidden finances was the result of a legal battle lasting eighteen months.

Trump's attorneys had fought to block the release of his tax returns and other financial documents from the Manhattan District Attorney's office. But in a unanimous decision, the highest court in the land ruled the Trump attorneys must release the mountain of financial records to the ongoing criminal investigation.

As the investigators scrutinize the personal bank account records of Weisselberg, his involvement in any shady dealings may come to light.

If Vance's office uncovers some illegal activity that the CFO knew about, the prosecutors would most likely attempt to get him to flip and cooperate during the investigation. If he is found complicit in any wrongdoings, questions arise about how the CFO can avoid legal vulnerabilities.

The Vance investigation also includes members of Weisselberg's immediate family.

Vance's team also interviewed Jennifer Weisselberg, his former daughter-in-law. Her husband, Barry Weisselberg, is the manager of Trump Wollman Rink in Central Park in NYC. Interviewed by the New York Times, Ms. Weisselberg said Trump and his company made numerous gifts to the Weisselbergs over the years. “These include an apartment on Central Park South for Ms. Weisselberg and her former husband, cars leased for several family members, and private school tuition" the Times reports.

Weisselberg has deep roots with the Trumps and has been working for them since the 1970s. He has been the key executive in charge of the Trump Organization's finances for over twenty years.

Though Vance's office picked up millions of documents in March, the New York Times report says many documents were missing.

Prosecutors discovered that a few dozen general ledgers were not included in the Supreme Court's order to hand over original documents.

These ledgers are usually very detailed, authentic documents and can offer real estate transactions' minutiae, including receipts and revenues, plus much more.

As the investigation into Trump and his organization continue, there are no new comments from Vance's office or Trump.