Michael Cohen could have been hit with a sentence of up to 15 years behind bars if he'd been charged and convicted of stealing $60,000 from former President Donald Trump, legal experts told the New York Post.
Cohen, the former Trump attorney admitted Monday to jurors in the Republican's legal expense trial that he stole money from Trump's company as defense lawyers focused on the star witness' misdeeds to attack his credibility, according to the Associated Press.
The landmark trial kicked back off with defense cross-examination of Cohen, whose pivotal testimony last week directly tied Trump to alleged reimbursement of Cohen's payment to catch and kill allegations of an extramarital affair.
Defense lawyers already have questioned Cohen for hours about his criminal history and past lies to paint him as a serial fabulist who is on a revenge campaign aimed at taking down the former president.
While pressed by defense attorney Todd Blanche, Cohen admitted he pocketed cash that was supposed to be reimbursement for a $50,000 payment that Cohen claimed he had shelled out to a technology firm. However, Cohen actually gave the technology firm just $20,000, he said.
Politico reported the $30,000 difference brings the total theft to $60,000 because all the sums were doubled to cover Cohen's tax liability.
The Post noted that Cohen could have been charged with second-degree grand larceny for stealing an amount over $50,000 — a class C felony. The charge carries a sentence ranging from probation to as much as 15 years behind bars.
"Practically speaking, this would never get prosecuted unless Donald Trump cooperated," said Jeremy Saland, a criminal defense attorney and former Manhattan prosecutor.
The five-year statute of limitations for grand larceny has since expired, but Michael Bachner, another former prosecutor in the Manhattan DA's office, said it was still effective for Trump's defense to get Cohen to admit to the theft.
"In one way [Cohen is] trying to take [Trump's] money, in another, he's trying to take his freedom," Bachner told the Post.
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
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