曼哈顿大陪审团已经起诉前总统唐纳德·特朗普,使他成为第一位面临刑事指控的现任或前任总统。
目前尚不清楚起诉书与什么有关,也不清楚特朗普将面临什么指控。起诉书是密封的。
在周四晚上发布的一份声明中,曼哈顿地区检察官办公室的发言人说,“今天晚上,我们联系了特朗普先生的律师,协调他向曼哈顿地方检察官办公室自首,接受最高法院起诉书的传讯,起诉书仍然密封。当提审日期选定时,将提供指导。"
知情人士告诉ABC新闻,特朗普预计将于下周早些时候在纽约投降。
特朗普在接受美国广播公司新闻采访时表示,这项指控是“政治迫害”和“对我们国家的攻击”。
“他们试图影响选举,”特朗普说竞选总统2024年。
特朗普在随后的一份声明中说:“从我走下特朗普大厦的金色扶梯开始,甚至在我宣誓就任美国总统之前,激进的左翼民主党人——这个国家勤劳的男女的敌人——一直在进行政治迫害,以摧毁让美国再次伟大的运动。”“将我们的司法系统武器化来惩罚一个政治对手,而这个政治对手恰好是美国总统,而且是共和党总统候选人中遥遥领先的,这在以前从未发生过。永远不会。”
特朗普一直在接受曼哈顿检察官办公室的调查,该办公室一直在调查这13万美元封口费付款打给成人电影女演员斯托米·丹尼尔斯,她声称自己与川普有染,而川普一直否认这一点。
2023年3月4日,在马里兰州国家港举行的年度保守派政治行动会议(CPAC)上,前总统唐纳德·川普在演讲前对记者说。
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
特朗普的前律师迈克尔·科恩在2016年竞选的最后几天给丹尼尔斯开了支票,进了监狱根据法庭记录,联邦检察官认为这笔钱相当于非法竞选捐款。
当特朗普偿还科恩的付款时,他的公司将这些付款记录为科恩法律服务的“每月预聘费”,根据特朗普的说法以及科恩后来认罪协议的法庭文件。消息人士称,检察官正在考虑特朗普是否应该被指控伪造商业记录。
科恩对记者说:“这完全是责任问题。”前来作证本月早些时候在曼哈顿大陪审团面前。对于特朗普,他说,“他需要为他的肮脏行为负责。”
特朗普一直坚称自己“绝对没有做错”,并称调查是民主党检察官政治迫害的一部分。特朗普的律师表示,这笔钱不是为了保护竞选,而是为了保护特朗普的家人。
辩护律师乔·塔科皮纳说:“他用个人资金制作了这个,以防止一些事情出现,这些事情是虚假的,但对他自己、他的家人和他年幼的儿子来说是尴尬的。”告诉乔治·斯特凡诺普洛斯两周前在美国广播公司的早安美国节目中。
曼哈顿地区检察官阿尔文·布拉格去年赢得了税务欺诈定罪与特朗普同名的公司及其前首席财务官艾伦·魏斯勒伯格,认罪逃税——但直到现在,特朗普本人从未面临指控。
Trump becomes 1st current or former president to be indicted
A Manhattan grand juryhas indictedformer President Donald Trump, making him the first current or former president to face criminal charges.
It was not immediately clear what the indictment was connected to, or what charges Trump will face. The indictment is under seal.
In a statement released Thursday evening, a spokesperson for the Manhattan district attorney's office said, "This evening we contacted Mr. Trump's attorney to coordinate his surrender to the Manhattan D.A.'s Office for arraignment on a Supreme Court indictment, which remains under seal. Guidance will be provided when the arraignment date is selected."
Trump is expected to surrender in New York early next week, sources familiar with the matter tell ABC News.
Speaking to ABC News, Trump called the indictment "political persecution" and "an attack on our country."
"They are trying to impact an election," said Trump, who isrunning for presidentin 2024.
"From the time I came down the golden escalator at Trump Tower, and even before I was sworn in as your President of the United States, the Radical Left Democrats -- the enemy of the hard-working men and women of this Country -- have been engaged in a Witch-Hunt to destroy the Make America Great Again movement," Trump said in a subsequent statement. "Weaponizing our justice system to punish a political opponent, who just so happens to be a President of the United States and by far the leading Republican candidate for President, has never happened before. Ever."
Trump has been under investigation by the Manhattan DA's office, which has been probing the $130,000hush money paymentmade to Stormy Daniels, the adult film actress who has alleged she had an affair with Trump, which he has long denied.
Michael Cohen, Trump's former lawyer who wrote the check to Daniels in the closing days of the 2016 campaign,went to prisonin part over the payment, which federal prosecutors believed amounted to an illicit campaign donation, according to court records.
When Trump reimbursed Cohen for the payment, his company logged the payments as a "monthly retainer" for Cohen's legal services,according to Trumpand court documents from Cohen's subsequent plea deal. Prosecutors were considering whether Trump should be charged with falsifying business records, sources say.
"This is all about accountability," Cohen told reporters when hearrived to testifybefore a Manhattan grand jury earlier this month. Of Trump, he said, "He needs to be held accountable for his dirty deeds."
Trump has long insisted he did "absolutely nothing wrong" and has called the investigation part of a witch hunt by a Democratic prosecutor. An attorney for Trump has said the payment was not meant to protect the campaign, but to protect Trump's family.
"He made this with personal funds to prevent something coming out, false, but embarrassing to himself, his family, his young son," defense attorney Joe Tacopinatold George Stephanopoulostwo weeks ago on ABC's Good Morning America.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg last year won atax fraud convictionagainst Trump's namesake company, and its former finance chief, Allen Weisselberg,pleaded guiltyto tax evasion -- but until now Trump himself had never faced an indictment.