The jailing of Weisselberg, who plead guilty to two counts of perjury related to his 2020 questioning during the fraud probe, comes less than a week before Trump is due to go on trial
The jailing of Weisselberg, who plead guilty to two counts of perjury related to his 2020 questioning during the fraud probe, comes less than a week before Trump is due to go on trial AFP

Donald Trump's former finance chief Allen Weisselberg was jailed for five months Wednesday for perjury after he admitted lying to prosecutors as they investigated the former president for fraudulently inflating his wealth.

Weisselberg, 76, was the chief financial officer of Trump's real estate and entertainment group from 2005 to 2021.

The jailing of Weisselberg, who pleaded guilty to two counts of perjury related to his 2020 questioning during the fraud probe, comes less than a week before Trump is due to go on trial for covering up hush money payments to hide a sex scandal.

In return for admitting that he lied when discussing Trump's valuation of the mogul's New York penthouse apartment, Weisselberg agreed with prosecutors to be sentenced to a lesser term of five months imprisonment.

The offenses for which he was charged carried prison terms of up to seven years, according to the plea document.

Prosecutors also agreed not to seek further charges against Weisselberg linked to his time at the Trump Organization.

On February 16, Trump was hit with a $355 million penalty -- significantly more including interest -- after being found liable for fraudulently manipulating the value of his properties to obtain favorable conditions on loans and insurance.

Trump, a prominent property developer and businessman in New York before entering politics, could have to sell or mortgage properties to post collateral to cover the shattering penalty if his ongoing appeal against the ruling fails.

Weisselberg has previously served time in New York's notorious Rikers Island prison for his role in corporate tax fraud for which the Trump company was fined $1.6 million.

It is there that he will serve this latest sentence.

He was personally fined $2 million after pleading guilty and agreeing to testify in the trial of Trump's company.

Weisselberg's testimony helped prosecutors gain the conviction of the Trump Organization and sister firm Trump Payroll Corp on 17 similar fraud and tax evasion charges that involved falsifying business records.

Although he testified against the company, Weisselberg did not implicate the former president, who is again running for the White House in 2024, in any crime.

"Allen Weisselberg looks forward to putting this situation behind him," his lawyer Seth Rosenberg said in a statement to AFP previously.

Jury selection starts Monday in Trump's criminal trial for allegedly falsifying business records for payments made by his lawyer Michael Cohen on the eve of the 2016 presidential election to porn star Stormy Daniels.

The payments were to make sure she did not publicize a sexual encounter.

Trump now has four criminal indictments to his name and faces 88 felony counts for a wide variety of alleged criminality.