Allen Weisselberg, the former Trump Organization chief financial officer, took the stand Tuesday in a civil trial in New York related to allegations former President Donald Trump overstated his net worth by billions of dollars.
Prosecutors presented questions to Weisselberg about the size of Trump’s New York City penthouse and the value of his Mar-a-Lago residence, but the ex-CFO avoided answering most of them directly, according to the Messenger.
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Weisselberg said he could not “remember” or “recall” the answers to dozens of questions prosecutors posed to him throughout the day, the outlet reported.
Weisselberg pleaded guilty last year to 15 charges brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, including grand larceny, criminal tax fraud, scheme to defraud, and falsifying business records. His plea bargain involved serving five months at Rikers Island and five years of probation, contingent upon testifying truthfully about the Trump Organization during a trial last year.
Weisselberg admitted at the time to “using his position at the Trump Organization to bilk taxpayers and enrich himself,” Bragg said after striking the plea deal.
The former CFO was grilled Tuesday about a piece of evidence prosecutors presented showing Trump had signed off on his Manhattan triplex being 11,000 square feet in 1994 despite later saying for years on financial statements used to obtain loans that it was 30,000 square feet, according to the Associated Press.
Weisselberg responded, according to the outlet, by downplaying the importance of the penthouse value compared to the Trump operation’s overall value, saying, “It was not something that was that important to me when looking at a $6 billion, $5 billion net worth.”
He was also faced with questions about the sales prices of properties near Mar-a-Lago, the value of which has drawn scrutiny after New York Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron, citing an appraisal, said it was valued at as low as $18 million.
The clippings attached to the email show property sales near MAL, all sold or offered for sale for much less than the value of MAL listed on statements of financial condition.
— Adam Klasfeld (@KlasfeldReports) October 10, 2023
While not required to appear for the trial, Trump showed up in person for the first couple of days, excoriating Engoron and New York Attorney General Letitia James as politically partisan radicals and claiming his Palm Beach, Florida, mansion was worth “a billion dollars, maybe a billion five.”
The trial comes after Engoron last month found Trump and his two oldest sons liable for business fraud in response to a sweeping lawsuit brought by James alleging Trump grossly overstated his net worth for years to manipulate his loan qualifications.
The trial is set to address an outstanding portion of James’s lawsuit and determine whether to grant her the $250 million she is seeking in damages from Trump.
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Last week, the judge estimated the trial would last until Dec. 22.
Weisselberg is expected to take the witness stand again in the case on Wednesday.
