Cohen is a key witness in the case of New York Attorney General Letitia James alleging that Trump’s company engaged in decades of fraud for financial gain.
The former personal public defender is confronting his ex-employer for the first time since their relationship broke up.
When he first entered the courtroom shortly after noon, Trump didn’t hold back and fixed his eyes on the computer screen in front of him. Neither did Cohen.
Cohen testified that he and the Trump Organization’s chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg, were ordered by Trump to increase the former president’s total assets based on a number he “arbitrarily chose.”
In that sense, he linked some of the assets he said he raised at the behest of his former boss, including Trump Park Avenue, the Trump World Tower at the United Nations Plaza, 100 Central Park South, Seven Springs and the Miss Universe pageants.
He added that it also “potentially” increases the value of the iconic Trump Tower and the value of “other properties.”
There is only one person who will receive the updated asset value, Cohen said in naming his former employer.
Trump and his legal team tried to show Judge Arthur Engoron in the weeks leading up to the show that Cohen could not be trusted because he was a “proven liar” and “criminal.”
According to the former president (2017-2021), “this case, for any judge, would have ended a long time ago,” because, as he stated in all his legal affiliations, he did nothing wrong.
Cohen’s long-awaited testimony drew the attention of journalists to the New York Supreme Court, as well as many other members of the public rather than the start of a wide-ranging fraud trial.
After promising to take a bullet for Trump, Cohen betrayed him amid investigations into a hush money deal made before the 2016 election.
That payment is the focus of Trump’s criminal prosecution in New York, which is separate from the civil fraud trial.
Cohen pleaded guilty and was sentenced to three years in prison for his role in the deal, although he was granted an early release due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Since turning his back on Trump, Cohen – who will also appear in court tomorrow – has become one of the former president’s strongest critics.
