New York Times Co. (NYT)

Michael Cohen Admitted He ‘Stole’ $30,000 From Trump Org—But Legal Experts Say He Probably Won’t Face Charges

Ex-Trump attorney Michael Cohen admitted during a fiery cross-examination in Donald Trump’s criminal trial he “stole” $30,000 from the Trump Organization after he was given funds to pay a tech firm—but although Trump’s lawyers are touting the admission, Cohen likely will not face charges, multiple New York criminal defense attorneys told Forbes. Key Facts Key Background The criminal charges against Trump hinge on a series of payments he made to Cohen in 2017. Prosecutors allege those payments were mislabeled as legal services, when they were really meant to reimburse Cohen for paying hush money to Daniels, along with a smaller reimbursement to cover Cohen’s payment to Red Finch and extra cash to cover Cohen’s taxes and bonus. According to Cohen, Trump was reimbursed $50,000 to pay Red Finch, a tech company hired to rig a CNBC poll on the most famous businessmen over the last century—even though he only came in 9th in the poll. However, Cohen admitted on the stand he only paid the company $20,000, keeping $30,000 for himself. Cohen said his decision to the money was “self-help” after the Trump Organization slashed his bonus in 2016. Later, Trump’s defense attorney Todd Blanche asked Cohen outright: "So you stole from the Trump Organization, right?" Cohen responded affirmatively, "yes sir." Surprising Fact Although Trump’s defense attorneys did not press Cohen on the theft until Monday, the disbarred attorney alluded to the payment discrepancy as early as last week, according to transcripts of the court proceedings. In testimony given during cross-examination on May 14, Cohen admitted he paid Red Finch “less than 50,000.” Legal experts were surprised it took Trump’s attorneys this long to press Cohen on the theft. “This is something that prosecutors fronted in their opening statement, it’s something Michael Cohen discussed without putting a number to it in his direct testimony. It is shocking that it took till the third day of cross-examination for defense counsel to get to the issue,” Epner said. “I cannot imagine a good reason for not making it the first substantive thing that they went into.” What To Watch For Trump’s defense attorneys are hoping Cohen’s admission will undermine his credibility and lead the jury to question the prosecution’s key witness. Cohen’s cross-examination ended Monday afternoon, and the prosecution rested their case. Trump’s defense attorneys will now have a chance to call witnesses, but it is unclear if they plan to call the former president to testify. Further Reading