Politics

Michael Cohen says federal prosecutors are investigating previously undisclosed wrongdoing related to Trump

Key Points
  • Michael Cohen testified Wednesday that he was aware that previously undisclosed wrongdoing related to President Donald Trump is under investigation by federal prosecutors in Manhattan.
  • Cohen said the actions were related to communications he had shortly after the April 2018 FBI raid on his home, office and hotel suite.
  • "Unfortunately, this topic is actually something that's being investigated right now by the Southern District of New York and I've been asked by them not to discuss" it, Cohen said in response to questions about the content of the talks.
Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images

Michael Cohen testified Wednesday that he was aware that previously undisclosed wrongdoing related to President Donald Trump is under investigation by federal prosecutors in Manhattan.

Cohen, the president's former personal lawyer, declined to disclose details on the matter.

During an exchange with Democratic Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi of Illinois, Cohen said the last time he spoke to the president or to someone representing the president was "within two months" of the April 2018 FBI raid on Cohen's home, office and hotel suite.

"What did he or his agent communicate to you?" asked Krishnamoorthi.

Michael Cohen just testified before Congress. Here are the key moments
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Michael Cohen just testified before Congress. Here are the key moments

"Unfortunately, this topic is actually something that's being investigated right now by the Southern District of New York and I've been asked by them not to discuss and not to talk about these issues," Cohen replied, referring to the U.S. attorney's office that is probing the matter.

"Is there any other wrongdoing or illegal act that you are aware of regarding Donald Trump that we haven't yet discussed today?" Krishnamoorthi followed up.

"Yes," Cohen responded. "And again, those are part of the investigation that's currently being looked at by the Southern District of New York."

The exchange was one of several Cohen had with members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee during his explosive testimony Wednesday, in which he appeared to hint at previously unreported acts by the president that could be illegal.

At another point in the hearing, Cohen described how he and Trump used math tricks to inflate the value of Trump's assets on paperwork they submitted to Deutsche Bank as part of an effort to obtain a loan for Trump.

Related: Here is an interactive map of Michael Cohen's links in Trump's world