World
For Trump, tax fraud case just one of several legal problems
NEW YORK (AP) — A New York jury convicted Donald Trump’s firm of tax fraud Tuesday, a verdict that would harm the Republican politically and provides to an already lengthy record of authorized complications as he mounts one other run for president.
Whereas Trump was not personally charged within the Manhattan district lawyer’s tax case, he faces different inquiries. They embody a felony investigation over prime secret paperwork discovered at his Florida property, probes in Georgia and Washington into his efforts to undo the outcomes of the 2020 presidential election, and extra probes in New York.
Trump has denied any wrongdoing and says he’s being focused by Democrats making an attempt to maintain him from reclaiming the White Home.
Right here’s a take a look at the probes underway in numerous states and venues:
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MAR-A-LAGO
The Justice Division is investigating the retention of prime secret authorities paperwork at Trump’s Florida property, Mar-a-Lago, and potential efforts to hinder that probe.
As a part of that inquiry, brokers and prosecutors have spent months interviewing a number of individuals near Trump, together with an aide who was seen on surveillance video transferring packing containers of paperwork on the property.
A grand jury in Washington has been listening to proof within the investigation. Prosecutors final month granted restricted immunity to 1 shut Trump ally to safe his testimony.
Lawyer Common Merrick Garland final month named Jack Smith, a veteran struggle crimes prosecutor who beforehand led the Justice Division’s public integrity part, to function particular counsel over the Mar-a-Lago investigation and key elements of a separate probe into efforts to overturn the outcomes of the 2020 presidential election.
2020 ELECTION AND CAPITOL RIOT
The Justice Division is investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, revolt and efforts to overturn the election Trump falsely claimed was stolen.
Federal prosecutors have been particularly centered on a scheme by Trump allies to raise pretend presidential electors in key battleground states gained by President Joe Biden as a approach to subvert the vote, issuing subpoenas to a number of state Republican celebration chairmen.
Federal prosecutors have introduced a number of Trump administration officers earlier than the grand jury for questioning, together with the previous Trump White Home counsel and a prime aide to Vice President Mike Pence.
In an indication of the increasing nature of the investigation, election officers in a number of states whose outcomes have been disputed by Trump have acquired subpoenas asking for communications with or involving Trump and his marketing campaign aides.
The Justice Division investigation is working parallel to a probe by a U.S. Home committee which held a number of public hearings about efforts by Trump and his allies to overturn his 2020 election loss. That Home committee doesn’t have the ability to file felony prices.
Trump has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
GEORGIA
After his 2020 election loss, Trump known as Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and urged him to “discover” the votes wanted to overturn his slender loss within the state.
That Jan. 2 telephone name is a part of an investigation by a prosecutor in Atlanta. Fulton County District Lawyer Fani Willis has stated she is considering subpoenaing Trump for his testimony.
Amongst those that have been questioned by the particular grand jury are former New York mayor and Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani and Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. The particular grand jury is predicted to wrap up its investigation quickly and to offer suggestions to Willis.
Prosecutors have additionally suggested Georgia Republicans who served as pretend electors that they’re vulnerable to being indicted. They signed a certificates asserting Trump had gained the election and declaring themselves the state’s electors, regardless that Biden had gained the state and a slate of Democratic electors had already been licensed.
Trump and his allies have denied any wrongdoing, and he has repeatedly described his telephone name to Raffensperger as “good.”
NEW YORK
New York Lawyer Common Letitia James has sued Trump and the Trump Group, saying it misled banks and tax authorities in regards to the worth of property like golf programs and skyscrapers to get loans and tax advantages.
That lawsuit, which is pending, may result in civil penalties in opposition to the corporate if the Democratic lawyer normal prevails. She desires $250 million and a ban on Trump doing enterprise in New York.
Within the meantime, a choose has appointed an impartial monitor to observe the corporate.
The Manhattan district lawyer’s workplace says it’s also nonetheless pursing a parallel felony investigation into Trump’s enterprise dealings.
District Lawyer Alvin Bragg lately named a brand new senior prosecutor to supervise that probe, which had seemed to be heading towards a attainable indictment when the Democrat slowed issues down after taking workplace in January.
The self-styled “king” of Germany and three of his senior “subjects” were arrested for attempting to overthrow the state, according to media reports.
Peter Fitzek, 59, was taken into police custody during morning raids conducted Tuesday in seven German states, the BBC reported.
Fitzek’s group, the Reichsbürger, or “citizens of the Reich,” has also been banned by the government.
TRUMP CELEBRATES CONSERVATIVE PARTY WIN IN GERMANY
Peter Fitzek, the self-proclaimed head of the so-called “Kingdom of Germany,” poses for a photo with the kingdom’s constitution in Wittenberg, Germany, Oct. 23, 2023. (Jens Schlueter/AFP via Getty Images)
The group’s aim is to establish the Königreich Deutschland, or “Kingdom of Germany.”
“I have no interest in being part of this fascist and satanic system,” Fitzek previously told the news outlet in a 2022 interview.
Reichsbürgers reportedly have their own currency, flag and identification cards and want to set up separate banking and health systems.
The Reichsbürger undermined “the rule of law,” said Alexander Dobrindt, Germany’s interior minister, by creating an alternative state and spreading “antisemitic conspiracy narratives to back up their supposed claim to authority,” the news report states.
GERMANY’S NEW LEADER LOOKS TO DISTANCE EUROPE FROM TRUMP
Peter Fitzek, the self-proclaimed head of the so-called “Kingdom of Germany,” shows the paper currency he created himself in Wittenberg, Germany, Oct. 23, 2023. (Jens Schlueter/AFP)
He said the group finances itself through crime.
Fitzek, who claims to have thousands of “subjects,” denied having violent intentions but also called Germany “destructive and sick.”
In 2022, dozens of people associated with the Reichsbürger were arrested for plotting to overthrow the German government in Berlin. They were accused of planning a violent coup, which included kidnapping the health minister in an effort to create “civil war conditions” to bring down German democracy, according to the BBC.
Self-made identity and banking documents of the so-called “Kingdom of Germany” are pictured in Wittenberg, Germany, Oct. 23, 2023. (Jens Schlueter/AFP via Getty Images)
Once dismissed as eccentric by critics, the group is now seen within Germany as a serious threat as the far right has grown politically over the past decade, the report said.
After his trip to Belgrade, European Council President António Costa visited Sarajevo on Tuesday as part of his Balkans tour. He was given a warm reception upon his arrival before meeting with Bosnia’s presidency.
In a statement, the European Council chief announced that the EU “remains committed” to the country’s European future. He also praised Željka Cvijanović, Denis Bećirović, and Željko Komšić — members of the Western Balkan country’s three-way presidency — for their role in maintaining stability and security in the country and the region.
Recently, tensions have been brewing domestically over the leader of the entity of the Republika Srpska (RS), Milorad Dodik’s actions, which the state-level authorities denounced for undermining the country’s constitutional order.
Western powers and the EU have condemned Dodik for his provocations after he had suggested that the Dayton Agreement, the peace agreement that formally ended the Bosnian War in 1995, had outlived its purpose.
In his statement, Costa underlined the importance of the Dayton accords, set to mark its 30th anniversary this year.
“And this year, on the 30th anniversary of Srebrenica genocide and the Dayton (and) Paris Agreement, I believe that it is an important message to remember,” said Costa.
Costa also outlined that some reforms are needed to ensure Bosnia remains on the path to EU membership.
“We need the approval of two judiciary laws, the appointment of a chief negotiator, and the adoption of the reform agenda to move towards on the Bosnia and Herzegovina in the European path.”
Bosnia is the only country that does not benefit from the EU’s Growth Plan for the Western Balkans. Costa stressed that implementing these reforms is of paramount importance to ensure that Bosnia’s citizens benefit from the EU plan.
“I would like to see Bosnia and Herzegovina joining the other Western Balkans partners in profiting from all that the European Union has to offer,” the Council president noted.
Costa will next travel to Montenegro and Albania on Wednesday, for meetings with President Jakub Milatović in Podgorica and President Bajram Begaj in Tirana. He’ll conclude his tour with a visit to Skopje in North Macedonia, where he will meet Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski.
Additional sources • AP
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