Donald Trump was detained before the start of the court session, where he should be charged with criminal charges on 33 counts. It is reported by CNN. He arrived at the Manhattan District Attorney's office and is in custody pending arraignment. This is a formal detention before charges are filed. Handcuffs will not be worn, but fingerprints will be taken, writes CNN. Trump will then return to the district attorney's office, after which he will go to his residence.
He became the first ex-President of the United States to face criminal charges. CNN and NYT previously reported that Trump is suspected of intentionally forging financial records in connection with payments to porn actress Stormy Daniels (Stephanie Clifford).
Earlier, a Manhattan County grand jury voted to indict Trump in a criminal case for paying porn actress Stormy Daniels $130,000 to keep quiet, compensating for this money from the campaign fund. She received money from Trump's lawyers ahead of the 2016 election. After appearing in court, Trump will be arrested, fingerprinted and photographed for a dossier, then he will answer the question of whether he pleads guilty, after which he will be released on bail. Trump himself denies a connection to Daniels, claiming it is political persecution to influence the upcoming 2024 presidential election.
In addition, in August 2022, the FBI searched Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence for top secret documents that he might have taken with him when he left the White House. The US National Archives asked Trump to return 15 boxes of documents for many months, but then decided to contact the FBI because of the threat of their destruction. Trump himself believes that the actions of the FBI were also related to the upcoming elections in 2024.
The news is being added.