A Tax Case against the Former President, Mr. Bragg, in the “Zombie Theory”, the “Desperately Needed” Judge, and the Defendant’s Attorney

An investigation into the former president and whether he inflated the value of his properties to get a better deal for them led to Mr. Bragg’s tax case. Seeking an insider to testify against the former president, the district attorney’s office leaned on Mr. Weisselberg, a loyal lieutenant who got his start with Mr. Trump’s father a half-century ago and served as the company’s financial gatekeeper for decades. Mr. Weisselberg was indicted for the special perks when he resisted their pressure campaign.

“Weisselberg’s acts were done to benefit himself and not done to benefit the company and we expect to show that at trial and be acquitted,” said one of the company’s lawyers, Susan R. Necheles. The prosecutors could argue that the scheme saved money for the company, which did not pay payroll taxes on the perks, but the defense will argue that the company lost money because of the arrangement.

Lawyers might argue that Mr. Weisselberg could’ve faced years in prison if he’d been coerced to testify. The plea deal calls for him to serve five months in jail, but with good behavior, he is likely to spend only 100 days there.

Nicholas A Gravante said that the judge overseeing the case would sentence his client up to 15 years if he lied on the witness stand.

Mr. Trump blamed the case on a “witch hunt” against him, using the same phrase he uses to help his political base in times of legal trouble.

The district attorney’s office referred to the inquiry into Mr. Trump’s business as the “zombie theory” in recent years, as an idea that wouldn’t die.

The first appearance of Mr. Bragg with the New York State District Attorney’s Office – a first encounter with prosecutors after a tax fraud case

The first visible sign of progress for Mr. Bragg came this month when Mr. Cohen appeared at the district attorney’s office in Lower Manhattan to meet with prosecutors for the first time in more than a year. He is expected to come back for another interview with prosecutors in February, one of the people said.

Allen Weisselberg, the company’s former CFO, was involved in paying Mr. Cohen. According to Mr. Cohen, Mr. Weisselberg and Mr. Trump were discussing the matter of a payment to Ms. Daniels.

The conviction of the Trump Organization in December came from a tax fraud scheme unrelated to the hush money deal that Mr. Weisselberg pleaded guilty to in the Rikers Island jail complex. Although he was the star witness for the district attorney’s office in that case — testifying against the company that had employed him for decades — he has never implicated Mr. Trump in any wrongdoing.

Mr. Cohen implicated the president in the payments even after pleading guilty to federal campaign finance charges. The federal prosecutors agreed with Mr. Trump that he was behind the deal, but never charged him with a crime.