Former United States president Donald Trump arrived in New York City on his private plane on Monday (April 3) to face charges stemming from a probe into hush money of $130,000 paid to porn star Stormy Daniels. Daniels said she was paid the money to keep silent about a sexual encounter she had with Trump, 76, at a Lake Tahoe hotel back in 2006. Trump, however, denies having had any such relationship with her.
Trump, the first US president ever to be criminally indicted, will be formally charged Tuesday over the case. He is due to surrender at the Attorney’s Office and will likely be fingerprinted before appearing before a judge for an arraignment where he will plead not guilty.
Trump waved at supporters as he walked into his Trump Tower residence under tight security just before 4:15 pm (2015 GMT) after flying from Florida. Before arriving in New York, the former president took to his social media platform Truth Social and said, “THEY’RE NOT COMING AFTER ME, THEY’RE COMING AFTER YOU — I’M JUST STANDING IN THEIR WAY!”
Speaking to the news agency Reuters, two sources said that Trump hired Todd Blanche, a prominent white-collar criminal defence lawyer, and former federal prosecutor, to join his defence.
Blanche and other Trump lawyers on Monday urged the judge not to allow videography, photography, and radio coverage of the arraignment.
Police have been on high alert with security cordons and Secret Service agents outside both Trump Tower and the court in Lower Manhattan. Earlier, NYC Mayor Eric Adams warned that anyone protesting violently would be arrested and held accountable, no matter who they are.
“While there may be some rabble-rousers thinking about coming to our city tomorrow our message is clear, is simple: ‘control yourselves’,” Adams told reporters.
Donald Trump, who is eyeing a return in 2024, is facing several criminal investigations at the state and federal levels over possible wrongdoing. The investigations include his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss in Georgia, his handling of classified documents, and his possible involvement in the storming of the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
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