Trump Org blasts Manhattan D.A. for 'scorched earth' prosecution

The Trump Organization issued a scathing statement following CFO Allen Weisselberg's surrender to the Manhattan district attorney's office Thursday morning, asserting that the D.A.'s investigation is not only unfounded, but that it's using Weisselberg as a "pawn" to harm former President Donald Trump. Both the company and Weisselberg are expected to face charges for tax-related crimes on Thursday, The New York Times reports.

"Allen Weisselberg is a loving and devoted husband, father, and grandfather who has worked at the Trump Organization for 48 years," reads the Trump Organization statement. "He is now being used by the Manhattan district attorney as a pawn in a scorched earth attempt to harm the former president." Trump himself was reportedly "emboldened" by what he saw as "light charges."

The company goes on to claim that the Manhattan D.A.'s probe into the Trump Organization and Weisselberg is one "neither the IRS nor any other district attorney would ever think of bringing." Prosecutors have been investigating whether Weisselberg "failed to pay taxes on valuable benefits" — like private school tuition or apartments — he received from Trump's company, the Times writes.

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Weisselberg and Trump Organization representatives are expected to appear in court Thursday afternoon. "This is not justice," the company asserts. "This is politics." Read more at The New York Times.