Former president Donald Trump and his lawyer Michael Cohen allegedly made the illegal payoffs as part of a deal to 'catch and kill' negative tabloid stories.
Donald Trump sits in the courtroom during his arraignment at the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse on April 4.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg Jr. revealed the allegations on Tuesday in a statement of facts his office released as the 34-count indictment against Trump was unsealed following the former president's historic arraignment.
Prosecutors say that in August 2015, Trump and Cohen met with David Pecker, then-CEO of American Media, which that owns several tabloids, including the National Enquirer, to head off potential negative news stories during the presidential campaign. The practice, called"catch and kill," isn't uncommon, but, American Media was especially keen to do it because Pecker was personal friends with Trump.
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