Former President Trump's ex-attorney and fixer Michael Cohen is set to testify as a witness in his former boss' criminal trial. Cohen was responsible for arranging a $130,000 hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels prior to the 2016 election. Subsequently, Trump made multiple payments of $35,000 to Cohen, who was serving as his personal attorney at the time.
These payments have become the focal point of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's indictment of Trump on charges of falsifying business records. Bragg aims to demonstrate that the $420,000 in payments made by Trump to Cohen were a reimbursement for the hush money payment to Daniels.
Trump's defense team contends that the $35,000 payments were legitimate and not a form of repayment. Trump has entered a plea of not guilty to 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree.
In 2018, Cohen pleaded guilty to campaign finance violations, providing false statements to Congress, and tax evasion. As a result, he was sentenced to three years in prison. Trump has previously denounced Cohen as a 'proven liar.'
