Former President Donald Trump falsified business records in order to "cover up crimes" related to the 2016 presidential election, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said Tuesday after the ex-president's historic arrest and arraignment.
"Under New York State law, it is a felony to falsify business records with the intention of fraud and intent to conceal another crime," Bragg said at a news conference Tuesday afternoon.
"That is exactly what this case is about," he said.
Trump less than two hours earlier pleaded not guilty to 34 felony counts of falsifying business records stemming from Bragg's probe centering on hush money payments made to two women ahead of the 2016 election. Trump won that race against Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton.
Bragg said Trump made false statements "month after month" in 2017 when he reimbursed his former lawyer Michael Cohen for the payments, claiming they were for legal services.
"Why did Donald Trump repeatedly make these false statements? The evidence will show he did so to cover up crimes related to the 2016 election," Bragg said.
The alleged scheme to conceal payments from the public "violated New York election law, which makes it a crime to conspire to promote a candidacy by unlawful means," the DA said.
"These are felony crimes in New York state, no matter who you are. We cannot and will not normalize serious criminal conduct," he said.
That statement came as Bragg has weathered a tidal wave of criticism from Trump and his allies, who accuse the Manhattan DA of pursuing a politically biased case, targeting him because he is a leading Republican candidate in the 2024 presidential race.
The grand jury's vote last week to indict Trump made him the first former president in U.S. history ever to face criminal charges.
The 16-page indictment was unsealed after Trump's arraignment earlier Tuesday afternoon. The DA's office also released a statement of facts that detailed alleged efforts to suppress the publication of claims from two women, porn star Stormy Daniels and ex-Playboy model Karen McDougal, who both alleged they had sex with Trump years earlier while he was married.