Rachael Omidiji
A Manhattan grand jury has indicted Donald Trump following an investigation into hush money payments made to porn star Stormy Daniels. He is now the first former American president charged with a crime as he prepares a second bid for the White House.
According to CNN on Thursday, the indictment is still under seal, therefore, the charges are not yet revealed. Trump is accused of corporate fraud on more than 30 counts.
Trump asserted his innocence and declared he would not withdraw from the 2024 presidential run. He claimed that Bragg, Democrat is trying to make it harder for him to defeat Democratic President Joe Biden in the general election.
He said, “This is Political Persecution and Election Interference at the highest level in history.”
According to his campaign, he has raised over $2 million since wrongly predicting on March 18 that he would be arrested four days later. Shortly after, Trump urged fans to donate money for legal defence.
According to polls, Trump is currently the front-runner for the Republican nomination in 2024. On Thursday, he received backing from a number of his potential rivals, including former Vice President Mike Pence and Florida Governor Ron Desantis.
“This will only further serve to divide our country,” Pence said.
While the White House did not comment, Democrats said Trump was not immune from the rule of law.
“I encourage both Mr. Trump’s critics and supporters to let the process proceed peacefully and according to the law,” said the top Democrat in the Senate, Chuck Schumer.
The charges will likely be unsealed by a judge in the coming days. Trump will have to travel to Manhattan for fingerprinting and other processing at that point.
Bragg’s office said it had contacted Trump’s attorney to coordinate a surrender, which a court official said would likely occur next Tuesday.
