Trump criminally charged, a first for US ex-president

A Manhattan grand jury voted to indict former US president Donald Trump on Thursday for his role in paying hush money to a porn star during the 2016 presidential campaign to silence claims of an extramarital sexual encounter.

Trump, 76, is the United States' first former president to face criminal charges.

Joe Tacopina, a lawyer for Trump, told The Associated Press he had been indicted. "He did not commit any crime. We will vigorously fight this political prosecution in court," Tacopina said in a statement.

The indictment, sought by the office of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, is not public. In New York, judges routinely keep charges under seal until defendants make their initial appearance in court.

The specific charges against Trump are not yet known as the indictment remains under seal. Reuters quoted CNN on Thursday as saying Trump faced more than 30 counts related to business fraud.

Trump issued a statement upon news of the indictment: "This is Political Persecution and Election Interference at the highest level in history. From the time I came down the golden escalator at Trump Tower, and even before I was sworn in as your President of the United States, the Radical Left Democrats the enemy of the hardworking men and women of this Country have been engaged in a Witch-Hunt to destroy the Make America Great Again movement."

Trump called Bragg, who is black, "a racist" and an "animal". He said his investigation was politically motivated.

In the weeks leading up to the indictment, Trump urged his supporters to protest on his behalf. Trump has threatened that there would be "potential death" and "destruction" if charges were filed against him in the case. He also said he would not quit the 2024 presidential race if indicted.

Trump allies denounced the indictment, saying that it is an effort to stop the former president from being reelected.

The case in New York is unlikely to have any legal bearing on Trump's third presidential candidacy, even if he is ultimately convicted, according to legal experts, because the US Constitution imposes no requirement that candidates for the highest office have a clean record.

Trump was expected to surrender to authorities next week, according to a person familiar with the matter who was not authorized to discuss a matter that remained under seal, AP reported.

Former Trump attorney Michael Cohen said Trump told him to pay Stormy Daniels $130,000 on the eve of the 2016 election in exchange for her to keep quiet about the alleged sexual encounter with Trump. But he has denied any affair with Daniels and said he followed Cohen's advice as his lawyer.

Cohen pleaded guilty to an array of federal felonies in 2018. Among them was a campaign finance offense for the porn star payment, as well as charges of lying to a bank and to Congress.

Besides the New York case, a Justice Department special counsel is investigating the handling of classified documents at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida and his efforts to reverse his election loss.

Agencies contributed to this story.