Trump Organisation and finance chief plead not guilty to tax charges

The Trump Organisation and its long-time finance chief have pleaded not guilty to tax charges arising from a two-year investigation into former president Donald Trump’s company. It is the first criminal case the New York authorities’ investigation has yielded. According to the indictment, from 2005 until this year Allen Weisselberg and the company cheated the state and city out of taxes by conspiring to pay senior executives off the books. Prosecutor Carey Dunne described a 15-year scheme “orchestrated by the most senior executives”, including chief financial officer Weisselberg, that was “sweeping and audacious”.