Former US President Donald Trump was charged on Tuesday with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in a historic case over allegations he orchestrated hush-money payments to two women before the 2016 U.S. election to suppress publication of their sexual encounters with him.
Prosecutors in Manhattan, New York accused Trump, the first sitting or former U.S. president to face criminal charges, of trying to conceal a violation of election laws during his successful 2016.
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Trump, 76, said when asked by the judge in court how he pleaded said ‘not guilty’. The front-runner in the race for the Republican nomination in 2024, Trump responded with answers like “yes” when the judge asked him if he understood a right. At one point, the judge put his hand to his ear as if to prompt an answer.
While falsifying business records in New York on its own is a misdemeanor punishable by no more than one year in prison, it is elevated to a felony punishable by up to four years when done to advance or conceal another crime, such as election law violations.
The two women in the case are adult film actress Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal.
(Editor: Oloyede Oworu)
