Between 2012 and 2016, COHEN concealed more than $4 million in personal income from the Internal Revenue Service, avoiding more than $1.3 million in income tax. COHEN also made false statements to a federally insured financial institution to obtain a $500,000 home equity loan.
Finally, in 2016, COHEN made or caused two separate payments to women to ensure that they did not publicly disclose their alleged affairs with a presidential candidate in advance of the election. In one instance, COHEN caused American Media, Inc. (AMI), which was identified in previous court filings as Corporation-1, to make a $150,000 payment to one woman; in the other, COHEN made a $130,000 payment to another woman through an LLC he incorporated for the purpose of making the payment. COHEN was reimbursed for the latter payment in monthly installments disguised as payments for legal services performed pursuant to a retainer, when in fact no such retainer existed.
COHEN made or caused both of these payments in order to influence the 2016 election and did so in coordination with one or more members of the campaign.
Fascinating. You'd think the National Inquirer of all companies would be all over such alleged affairs and attempts to pay the women off, publishing all sorts of tawdry articles about it.
And yet, they participated in hiding the scoop. How perplexing.... (sarcasm)