Donald Trump arrived on Monday in New York, where a criminal court is due to serve him with an indictment on Tuesday in a fraud case related to a hush payment to a porn star.
Tuesday’s arraignment will be a historic court appearance for a former US president. It is an even more extraordinary event as the 76-year-old billionaire has re-entered the race for the Republican nomination for the US presidential election in November 2024.
Trump's private Boeing 757, stamped with his name, touched down at around 19:25 GMT at New York’s LaGuardia airport.
Only a handful of protesters
Just before leaving his Mar-a-Lago mansion in Florida, Donald Trump wrote in capital letters on his Truth Social network that he was travelling to New York to “make America great again” and that he was the victim of a “WITCH HUNT, as our once great Country is going to HELL!”
In New York, the area around Trump Tower, where he will stay for 36 hours, has been under tight security for days, even though only a handful of pro- and anti-Trump protesters have been marching there.
Since Friday, one opponent has been walking around with two signs: “Lock him up and… Throw away the key.”
In contrast, a supporter, Vito Dichiara, a retiree from Long Island, told French news agency AFP that he was “here to support Donald Trump, the former and future president of the United States.”
“The Democratic Party is just interfering in the election, Donald Trump won in 2020 but the Democrats stole the election,” claimed the 71-year-old, who identified himself as a former Fox News cameraman.
Charges against Trump said to be as many as 30
In fact, Donald Trump has never admitted defeat in the last presidential election, held in November 2020, and has since accused Joe Biden of “cheating” and “stealing” the victory. He dreams of winning back the White House in November 2024.
For now, he is preparing for the legal “battle” in New York, according to one of his lawyers.
In an unprecedented move, the populist former head of state, who upended the US political system, society and balance of power, was criminally indicted on 30 March by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg after a five-year investigation by the New York state judiciary.
Donald Trump swears he is “innocent” and his lawyer Joseph Tacopina said on Sunday that Tuesday would be “the day the rule of law dies in the United States.”
The businessman, a native of New York, is due to be served with criminal charges on Tuesday from 2.15pm (8.15 pm in Brussels). The charges have not been made public but are said to be 30.
Name, age, occupation, fingerprints, photograph, but no handcuffs
The summons, in a ritual unheard of for a former head of state, is expected to see Mr Trump give his name, age and occupation, submit to fingerprinting and be photographed, like any defendant.
According to Mr. Tacopina said he will not be handcuffed, but may have to walk through corridors of the Manhattan courthouse, with the media present.
Before the judge, “the president will plead not guilty” because he has committed “no criminal offence,” according to his defence. Trump is then expected to be released, possibly with conditions, pending his trial.
With the courthouse area in lower Manhattan under tight security, New York City Mayor Eric Adams, a former police officer, warned potential “troublemakers” to behave themselves.
The affair plaguing Donald Trump dates back to October 2016, just before his surprise election as world leader.
Other potential indictments await the former president
His personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, who turned against him, had at the time paid pornographic film actress Stormy Daniels $130,000 to buy her silence. The porn star claims she had a sexual relationship with Donald Trump.
This is denied by the person concerned. Trump has acknowledged having reimbursed Michael Cohen, but insists that the transaction was not illegal.
If the agreement made with Stormy Daniels was indeed authorised, it could, however, correspond to a campaign expense. Yet the sum does not appear in the candidate’s 2016 accounts and was, instead, listed as “legal fees” in the documents of his company, the Trump Organization.
In addition to this investigation in New York, federal justice is looking into his role in the attack on the US Capitol on 6 January 2021 and his management of presidential records after he left the White House.
A prosecutor in Georgia is also looking into pressure he exerted on election officials to contest his defeat in the 2020 presidential election.
