Michael Cohen's Legal Troubles: Texting Scandal

Michael Cohen, former lawyer to President Donald Trump, pleaded guilty to eight criminal charges in 2018, including five counts of tax evasion, one count of making false statements to a financial institution, one count of willfully causing an unlawful corporate contribution in breach of the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) of 1971, and one count of making an excessive campaign contribution at the request of a candidate (Trump) for the principal purpose of influencing [the] election.

Lying to Congress

Michael Cohen, former lawyer to President Donald Trump, pleaded guilty in November 2018 to lying to Congress about a Trump real estate deal in Russia. Cohen admitted to making false statements in 2017 to the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence about a plan to build a Trump Tower in Moscow. This was not the first time Cohen had been in legal trouble; in August 2018, he pleaded guilty to eight counts including campaign finance violations, tax fraud, and bank fraud.

In February 2019, Cohen was officially disbarred from practising law in the state of New York. He was sentenced to three years in federal prison and ordered to pay a $50,000 fine. Cohen completed his sentence in November 2021.

Cohen's case serves as a reminder that lying to Congress is a crime, even if no oath is taken. Witnesses who lie by claiming they don't recall something could find themselves in legal trouble.

Tax evasion

In August 2018, Michael Cohen pleaded guilty to eight criminal charges, including five counts of tax evasion. From 2012 to 2016, Cohen failed to report more than $4 million in income to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). This included income from his work with various taxicab companies, as well as hundreds of thousands of dollars from other activities, such as consulting, brokering sales of real estate, and the sale of a Birkin bag.

Cohen's tax evasion scheme involved concealing his income from his accountant and the IRS. He did this by arranging to receive portions of his income personally, rather than through his business entities, and by hiding additional sources of income, such as payments received from brokering sales. As a result of his scheme, Cohen failed to report more than $4 million in income, evading over $1.4 million in taxes.

In addition to tax evasion, Cohen also pleaded guilty to making false statements to a federally-insured bank and campaign finance violations. He was sentenced to three years in federal prison, fined $50,000, and ordered to pay $1.4 million in restitution and forfeit $500,000.

Bank fraud

In 2018, Michael Cohen, former lawyer and self-described "fixer" for Donald Trump, pleaded guilty to eight criminal charges, including bank fraud. Cohen's bank fraud charge related to a $500,000 home equity loan he obtained from a bank. Cohen was accused of making false statements to the bank to secure the loan.

Cohen's dealings with the bank were scrutinised as part of a federal investigation into his business activities. Investigators examined whether Cohen had used a bank loan for a purpose other than what he stated on his loan application. Cohen had taken out a loan from First Republic and used the funds to pay $130,000 to adult film star Stormy Daniels, with whom Trump allegedly had an affair. Cohen claimed he used funds from a home equity line of credit for the payment.

Under the US bank fraud statute, it is illegal to "obtain any moneys, funds, credits, assets, securities or other property owned by a financial institution by means of false or fraudulent pretences". The statute carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison or a million-dollar fine.

Cohen's bank fraud charge was one of several criminal charges he faced, including tax evasion and campaign finance violations. He was sentenced to three years in federal prison and ordered to pay a $50,000 fine.

Campaign finance violations

Michael Cohen, former lawyer and self-described "fixer" for Donald Trump, pleaded guilty to eight criminal charges in August 2018, including one count of causing an unlawful campaign contribution and one count of making an excessive campaign contribution. These charges related to Cohen's violation of campaign finance laws during the 2016 presidential election.

Cohen paid $130,000 to adult film actress Stephanie Clifford, known as Stormy Daniels, and arranged for a publishing company to pay $150,000 to model Karen McDougal, for their silence regarding alleged affairs with Trump. These payments were intended to influence the outcome of the 2016 election and were treated as campaign contributions, which are subject to restrictions under the Federal Election Campaign Act. Cohen's payment to Clifford exceeded the $2,700 limit on personal contributions to a single candidate for an election, and the payment to McDougal flouted the ban on corporations contributing directly to campaigns.

In addition to the campaign finance violations, Cohen was also found guilty of tax evasion and making false statements to a federally-insured bank. He was sentenced to three years in prison, fined $50,000, and ordered to pay restitution and forfeit money.

Lying to a federally-insured bank

The law imposes a fine of up to $1,000,000, imprisonment of up to 30 years, or both for those who are found guilty. It is commonly used to prosecute individuals who falsify their loan or credit applications, but it has a broader scope as well. The law is popular with prosecutors due to its straightforward nature for juries and the fact that proof usually consists of documentary evidence, resulting in a high conviction rate.

In the case of Michael Cohen, the former lawyer for ex-President Donald Trump, he pleaded guilty in 2018 to making false statements to a financial institution, among other charges. Cohen admitted to facilitating hush money payments to two women, Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal, at the direction of Trump, to keep them quiet about their alleged affairs with Trump during the 2016 presidential election campaign. Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison, including time served for tax evasion and campaign finance violations.

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