ALBAWABA - Former U.S. President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty to 34 criminal charges against him in Manhattan criminal court Tuesday.
CNN quoted a source familiar with the matter as saying the indictment against Trump has been unsealed.
Trump left the courthouse after entering the not-guilty plea.
JUST IN: Donald Trump pleads not guilty after hearing charges against him stemming from hush money investigation, a source says https://t.co/RgEO84xSz1 pic.twitter.com/CZ3jQLaWot
— CNN International (@cnni) April 4, 2023
CNN said the arraignment contained "skeleton" details on the charges laid out against the former president. Quoting the indictment, it said each criminal charge Trump is facing "relates to a specific entry among the business records of the Trump Organization."
"The Manhattan prosecutors accuse Trump of repeatedly causing false entries in the business records," CNN added.
Earlier, Trump arrived at the Manhattan district attorney’s office, where he was placed under arrest and in police custody before he was arraigned.
Hundreds of supporters lined the streets leading to the courtroom in a show of solidarity with the ex-president, who said the case against him was politically motivated.
The supporters waved American flags, Trump pictures and placards expressing support for the ex-president. Heavy security was deployed around the courthouse, with all streets leading to it sealed off.
Trump later surrendered to police, where he was being fingerprinted and his picture taken, like any American citizen facing criminal charges, according to U.S. law enforcement officials.
The arraignment in the Manhattan courtroom Tuesday represents a historic juncture in U.S. history being the first time that a former U.S. president is charged in a criminal case.
The case involves a hush money payment his former lawyer Michael Cohen made to ex-porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 election to buy her silence ahead of electioneering.
JUST IN - Trump pumped his fist and waved before leaving Trump Tower and waved again before entering Manhattan courthousepic.twitter.com/9f1saFv7zV
— Insider Paper (@TheInsiderPaper) April 4, 2023
