NEW YORK — The Trump Organization’s longtime tax accountant told a Manhattan jury Tuesday that had he fully understood how the company paid its executives, he would’ve had a heart attack.
Donald Bender, a partner at Mazars USA LLP, was the first witness to testify for the defense at the Manhattan district attorney’s tax fraud trial against the Trump Organization. The former president has blamed Bender for not catching the malfeasance.
Jurors have heard how the company’s convicted Chief Financial Officer, Allen Weisselberg, 75, and other full-time executives received millions in yearly bonuses, partially as independent contractors, from different Trump-owned entities — on top of their sizable salaries. By paying its employees as freelancers, the company didn’t have to pay payroll taxes.
