Former US president Donald Trump’s historic criminal trial wrapped up for the week on Friday following four days of testimony by a colorful former tabloid publisher who said he suppressed potentially damaging stories about Trump.
Trump, 77, is accused of falsifying business records to reimburse his lawyer, Michael Cohen, for a US$130,000 hush money payment made to porn star Stormy Daniels just days ahead of the 2016 election against Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Daniels, 45, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, was threatening at the time to go public with her story about an alleged 2006 sexual encounter with Trump that could have potentially derailed his White House campaign.
Photo: AFP
During four days of testimony, David Pecker, 72, the first witness called by the prosecutors, outlined a scheme known as “catch and kill,” which involved buying and then burying salacious stories that could have been embarrassing to the real-estate tycoon.
The former publisher of the National Enquirer was not personally involved in the payment to Daniels, but prosecutors are using his testimony to demonstrate that “catch and kill” was commonly used by Trump and his “fixer” Cohen.
Pecker told the court he paid US$30,000 to kill a story from a Trump Tower doorman who was peddling an apparently false claim that Trump had fathered a child out of wedlock with a maid.
He said US$150,000 was paid to squash a story from Karen McDougal, a Playboy model who claimed to have had a year-long affair with Trump.
“We purchased the story so it would not be published by any other organization,” Pecker told the jury. “We didn’t want the story to embarrass Mr Trump or hurt his campaign.”
When it came to squashing Daniels’ tale of her alleged sexual encounter with Trump, Pecker said he hesitated to pay for yet another story.
“I’m not a bank,” he said.
The executive suggested to Cohen that he pay for it instead, which prosecutors say the then-Trump fixer did.
Trump has appeared increasingly disgruntled, angry even, as the trial proceeds.
The Republican presidential candidate is required to report to the chilly Manhattan courtroom multiple times a week, restricting his time on the campaign trail less than seven months before his likely election rematch with US President Joe Biden.
Speaking to reporters in a hallway before entering court on Friday, Trump wished his wife, Melania, a happy birthday.
“It’d be nice to be with her but, I’m at a courthouse for a rigged trial,” Trump said.
Leaving court for the day he railed against the case, calling it a “well-coordinated attack on a political opponent.”
Two other witnesses made brief appearances on Friday — Rhona Graff, Trump’s long-time executive assistant, and Gary Farro, whose former bank was used to wire the payment to Daniels.
Graff said that contact information for McDougal and Daniels was registered in the Trump Organization computer system.
She also said she recalled seeing Daniels once in the reception area of Trump Tower before her boss was a candidate for the White House.
Seven people sustained mostly minor injuries in an airplane fire in South Korea, authorities said yesterday, with local media suggesting the blaze might have been caused by a portable battery stored in the overhead bin. The Air Busan plane, an Airbus A321, was set to fly to Hong Kong from Gimhae International Airport in southeastern Busan, but caught fire in the rear section on Tuesday night, the South Korean Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said. A total of 169 passengers and seven flight attendants and staff were evacuated down inflatable slides, it said. Authorities initially reported three injuries, but revised the number
‘BALD-FACED LIE’: The woman is accused of administering non-prescribed drugs to the one-year-old and filmed the toddler’s distress to solicit donations online A social media influencer accused of filming the torture of her baby to gain money allegedly manufactured symptoms causing the toddler to have brain surgery, a magistrate has heard. The 34-year-old Queensland woman is charged with torturing an infant and posting videos of the little girl online to build a social media following and solicit donations. A decision on her bail application in a Brisbane court was yesterday postponed after the magistrate opted to take more time before making a decision in an effort “not to be overwhelmed” by the nature of allegations “so offensive to right-thinking people.” The Sunshine Coast woman —
A colossal explosion in the sky, unleashing energy hundreds of times greater than the Hiroshima bomb. A blinding flash nearly as bright as the sun. Shockwaves powerful enough to flatten everything for miles. It might sound apocalyptic, but a newly detected asteroid nearly the size of a football field now has a greater than 1 percent chance of colliding with Earth in about eight years. Such an impact has the potential for city-level devastation, depending on where it strikes. Scientists are not panicking yet, but they are watching closely. “At this point, it’s: ‘Let’s pay a lot of attention, let’s
BORDER SERVICES: With the US-funded International Rescue Committee telling clinics to shut by tomorrow, Burmese refugees face sudden discharge from Thai hospitals Healthcare centers serving tens of thousands of refugees on the Thai-Myanmar border have been ordered shut after US President Donald Trump froze most foreign aid last week, forcing Thai officials to transport the sickest patients to other facilities. The International Rescue Committee (IRC), which funds the clinics with US support, told the facilities to shut by tomorrow, a local official and two camp committee members said. The IRC did not respond to a request for comment. Trump last week paused development assistance from the US Agency for International Development for 90 days to assess compatibility with his “America First” policy. The freeze has thrown
RSS