New York, October 27: Former US President Donald Trump stormed out of a Manhattan courtroom after a heated encounter during his $250 million state fraud case. He was fined $10,000 for violating a previous gag order imposed by District Attorney Letitia James. The incident followed a confrontation with his former lawyer Michael Cohen and Judge Arthur Angoron.
This fine was imposed for Trump’s first violation of the gag order, under which a fine of $5,000 had already been imposed. Trump’s sudden departure surprised everyone, including his lawyer and Secret Service agent. He later returned to the courtroom following Michael Cohen’s testimony, during which Cohen claimed that he had extorted Trump’s business properties at Trump’s request.
Judge Arthur Engoron imposed a second $10,000 fine on Trump after he called a man sitting next to the judge “biased.” Trump later clarified that he was referring to Cohen, whom he has previously criticized as a liar and a criminal. Trump’s lawyer requested that there be no disruptive behavior during Cohen’s questioning.
After Judge Angoron expressed doubt about the credibility of Trump’s brief testimony and issued the fine, Trump angrily left the courtroom. He accused the judge of being biased and suggested that the person next to him was even more biased.
Trump’s attorney, Cliff Roberts, refuted Cohen’s testimony, claiming that Trump never instructed Cohen to enhance his financial statements. Under questioning from the state attorney general’s office, Cohen said that although Trump did not explicitly ask him to increase the numbers, he felt Trump’s instructions were akin to a “mob boss” indirectly expressing his wishes. We do.
Cohen’s furious two days on the witness stand ended with the denial of Robert’s request for a directed verdict. Judge Engoron said there was sufficient credible evidence in the case, including previous findings that Trump had engaged in “persistent fraud” with his financial statements.
Cohen commented on the unsuccessful motion to dismiss the case after leaving the courtroom, and state Attorney General Letitia James emphasized that Cohen was not the key witness in the case and would ultimately be held accountable for his actions.