Trump's lawyer claims the former president won't be charged in the Manhattan's DA's first indictment
- Trump's lawyer said Manhattan prosecutors don't plan to charge Trump in their first indictment.
- He also told Politico that investigators don't plan to bring charges related to hush-money payments.
Former President Donald Trump's personal lawyer told Politico on Monday that the Manhattan district attorney's office does not plan to bring criminal charges against Trump in its first indictment, which could come as soon as this week.
"They just said, 'When this indictment comes down, he won't be charged,'" Ron Fischetti told Politico. But he added that the DA's office said its investigation is "ongoing," meaning the former president may not be out of hot water just yet.
Fischetti also said that Manhattan district attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. indicated that his office will not indict the Trump Organization on charges related to hush-money payments to women who have alleged affairs with Trump, or to manipulating the value of assets tied to the company.
Vance's office began investigating Trump and the Trump Organization after his former longtime fixer Michael Cohen revealed that he coordinated an illegal hush money payment to the porn star Stormy Daniels at the knowledge and direction of Trump.
Since then, the investigation has widened to examine whether the sprawling real-estate company artificially inflated or deflated the value of its assets for loan and tax purposes, respectively.
Fischetti told Politico on Monday that the DA's office may bring criminal charges against the Trump Organization and individual employees in connection to some financial perks they enjoyed. Jennifer Weisselberg, the former daughter-in-law of Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg, previously told Insider's Jacob Shamsian that she and her former husband, Barry, who is also a company employee, received housing and tuition payments for their children without properly paying taxes on them.
Investigators ratcheted up the pressure on Allen Weisselberg in recent months as they sought to "flip" him as a cooperating witness. But he hasn't struck a deal, and former Trump Organization executive Barbara Res told Insider in an interview that Barry Weisselberg's employment at the company could explain his father's reluctance to turn on Trump.
The former president, meanwhile, has portrayed the investigation as a politically motivated witch hunt and alleges that Vance and New York attorney general Tish James are out to get him.
Fischetti also criticized the probe on Monday, telling Politico, "It's like the Shakespeare play 'Much Ado About Nothing.' This is so small that I can't believe I'm going to have to try a case like this."