Trump arrested at New York court, to face criminal charges

Former US President Donald Trump on Tuesday surrendered before the Manhattan courthouse to be arraigned on history-making criminal charges related to paying hush money to a porn star before the 2016 presidential election in exchange for her silence.
Trump, the first former US President to face a criminal charge, would surrender before Judge Juan Merchan. American media quoted Trump’s attorneys as saying that the 76-year-old Republican leader, eying the White House for a second time in 2024, will plead not guilty to the criminal charges he is facing in connection with hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels.
Trump flew to New York City in his Boeing 757 aircraft from his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida on Monday and arrived at the La Guardia airport. His motorcade then made its way to the Trump Tower on 5th Avenue in Manhattan where he stayed overnight.
Streets around the high-end Trump Tower have been cordoned off, with heavy police presence in and around the area. The former President waved at scores of his supporters as he came out from the SUV and was escorted immediately inside the building. After his court appearance, Trump will immediately fly back to Florida where he will deliver remarks at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach in the evening.
The arraignment proceeding is expected to be brief. The charges in the indictment will be read to him at the hearing, which is set to last about 10-15 minutes. Trump has denied all wrongdoings in connection with the payments made to Stormy Daniels, 44, ahead of the 2016 presidential election.
Trump faces more than 30 counts related to business fraud in the indictment, according to US media reports.
Security was tightened in New York, in particular the courthouse in lower Manhattan, as hundreds of Trump’s supporters have landed in the city to rally behind him. New York City Mayor Eric Adams has warned against any breaking of law and order.
Hours before his arraignment, Trump sent an email to his supporters, which he claimed was the last one before his arrest, saying that the United States is becoming a “Marxist Third World” country and went on social media questioning the fairness of the judiciary.
“My last email before my arrest,” Trump said in the subject line of the email.
“Today, we mourn the loss of justice in America. Today is the day that a ruling political party ARRESTS its leading opponent for having committed NO CRIME,” Trump wrote.
“As I will be out of commission for the next few hours, I want to take this moment to THANK YOU for all of your support. I am blown away by all of the donations, support, and prayers we have received. It’s sad to see what’s happening – not for myself – but for our country,” he said.
In less than 24 hours after being indicted he raised over more than USD 4 million.