A lawyer who once advised Michael Cohen says the ex-Trump lawyer had nothing to do with hush money payments to porn performer Stormy Daniels and that Cohen made the arrangement himself. It is claimed that
Robert Costello, the attorney who advised Cohen after he was indicted on federal charges in 2018, told Congress on Wednesday, the same week that Cohen was testifying against his former boss in a Manhattan courtroom. He testified before the House Weapons Committee at the Capitol.
Costello, a former U.S. attorney in the Southern District of New York, said he was able to talk about his interactions with Cohen because he had “waived the attorney-client privilege and the attorney’s duty of loyalty to his client.” He explained. ”
Flashback: Trump v. Manhattan: Bob Costello testifies to grand jury, says Michael Cohen is a ‘serial liar’
Costello testified before the grand jury in Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s case against former President Trump. Mr. Costello testified in March 2023, weeks before the Bragg grand jury indicted Mr. Trump on 34 counts of first-degree business record falsification.
Mr. Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen leaves his home on May 14, 2024, to head to Manhattan Criminal Court for former President Donald Trump’s trial on charges of concealing hush money related to an affair in New York City. (Timothy A. Clary/AFP via Getty Images)
Costello recalled an exchange with Cohen in 2018 in which he said the former Trump lawyer was “suicidal and desperately looking for a way out” after the indictment.
“I advised him that the SDNY believes he committed a crime and may have evidence that could be used to prosecute President Trump,” Costello testified Wednesday. “I explained to Mr. Cohen that he was not a target of the investigation, that he was a lost man, and that the U.S. Attorney’s Office would run him over if Donald Trump led him to do so.”
Costello told Cohen: “If you have true information that could implicate Donald Trump, if you cooperate with us against Donald Trump, we can resolve your legal issues by the end of the week.” He testified that he explained that.
“I emphasized that the information that Mr. Cohen could provide had to be true or it would be useless,” Costello testified, saying he did this “many times” during their first meeting.
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“Each time, Cohen said to me, ‘I swear to God, Bob, I have nothing on Donald Trump,'” Costello recalled Cohen saying. “Cohen must have said this at least 10 times, because I kept coming back to the problem from different approaches.”
During their conversation, Costello said, Cohen said he would do “whatever it takes” to avoid spending a day in jail.
Mr. Costello also referred to a telephone conversation he had with Mr. Cohen a few days earlier, in which Mr. Cohen said he was “seriously considering jumping off the roof of the Regency Hotel in New York City” because he “couldn’t stand the pressure of a criminal about to come.” “I am thinking about it,” he said. case. ”
Mr. Costello said he urged Mr. Cohen to reconsider.
“With true information, wouldn’t it be easier to cooperate against Donald Trump than to commit suicide?” he asked.
Defendant Michael Cohen is cross-examined by defense attorney Todd Blanche in former President Trump’s criminal trial (Reuters/Jane Rosenberg)
Costello also testified that he was involved in a non-disclosure agreement with adult film actress Stormy Daniels. Costello said Cohen was contacted by a lawyer who told him that if Trump did not intend to “buy his silence,” he would allege that he had sexual contact with Trump.
Costello said Wednesday that Cohen “doesn’t believe the allegations, but believes this story would be embarrassing for Mr. Trump and especially for Melania, so he decided to handle it himself.”
Costello testified that Cohen’s “motives have become clear” as he reportedly expressed a desire to work for the Trump administration after the 2016 election.
Mr. Costello testified that Mr. Cohen thought Mr. Trump would nominate him as attorney general or at least chief of staff.
“Mr. Cohen then explained that he had negotiated $130,000 in exchange for an NDA to do so. When Mr. Trump asked if he knew about this, Mr. Cohen said no. When asked if he received the dollars from Mr. Trump or Trump entities, he said no, “or a friend,” Costello also said no,” Costello testified.
“I asked if this came from Mr. Cohen’s own money, and Mr. Cohen said no. Then, when asked where he got the money, Mr. Cohen said that he could not tell anyone where the money came from. I explained that I took out a HELOC loan because I didn’t want anyone to know.” ”
Michael Cohen testifies that he secretly recorded President Trump in preparation for the 2016 election
Mr. Costello echoed Mr. Cohen’s testimony at Mr. Trump’s trial this week, saying that Mr. Cohen said he did not want his wife to know because she was in charge of the family finances.
So far, Mr. Cohen has testified at Mr. Trump’s criminal trial that he personally paid $130,000 to Mr. Daniels using a home equity line of credit to hide the payments from his wife. Cohen said he did so because President Trump told him to “deal with it” and prevent negative stories before the election.
Cohen testified that of the $130,000 he paid Daniels, “$420,000 was reimbursed.” Cohen said former Trump Organization chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg had indicated that the payments would be “grossly calculated,” and that Trump himself was aware of the repayments.
However, Cohen also testified at trial that he did not tell Costello that Trump knew about the redemption because he was still loyal to Trump. He also said, “Based on all our conversations, I believe that: [Costello] I’ll be running back to Mister soon. [Rudy] Mr. Giuliani and his interactions will likely be leaked to President Trump. ”
In a courtroom sketch from Manhattan State Court in New York City, May 14, 2024, Michael Cohen falsifies business records to hide funds he paid to hush porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016. He testified in former President Trump’s criminal trial on charges of (Reuters/Jane Rosenberg)
Costello said Wednesday that the “gist” of his testimony was that “When Michael Cohen was given the opportunity to engage Donald Trump in exchange for eliminating his huge legal problems, Donald Trump He has repeatedly stated that he knows nothing of the truth.”
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“Now that Michael Cohen is in prison, he is on a journey of revenge because he has been disbarred from practicing law and is blaming Donald Trump for the fact that he actually went to prison.” Costello said. “The Southern District of New York saw this and acted appropriately. The Manhattan District Attorney became famous and took a different route to ‘get’ Trump.”
Costello said Cohen was “simply not a trustworthy person” and claimed that Cohen “lies when he thinks it’s in his own interest, but tells the truth when it’s in Michael Cohen’s own interest.” did.
Donald Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen returned to the witness stand Tuesday in the New York v. Trump trial. (Getty Images)
After testifying before a grand jury last year, Mr. Costello told reporters that Mr. Cohen was a “serial liar.”
At the time, in March 2023, Fox News Digital reached out to Cohen for comment on Costello’s claims.
“If Bob Costello’s comments had been more fanciful, he would have been a best-selling novelist,” Cohen told Fox News Digital last year. “Importantly, I never slept with Stormy. I told her years ago that the payments were made at Donald’s direction, in concert, and for Donald’s benefit. said.
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“The truth is the truth and the documents in DANY’s possession prove it.”
Cohen is expected to continue testifying Thursday as prosecutors wrap up their case. Judge Juan Melchan is presiding over the Trump trial.
