Two Trump Organization executives appear before NY grand jury as prosecutors continue to probe the former President’s company
By Paula Reid, Kara Scannell and Taylor Romine, CNN
Two top Trump Organization officials appeared before a Manhattan grand jury on Thursday in the latest sign that the criminal investigation into former President Donald Trump‘s business is ongoing.
The Trump Organization’s corporate director of security, Matthew Calamari Jr., arrived midday and remained silent as he entered the courthouse alongside his lawyer, after having been subpoenaed to appear.
Jeffrey McConney, the controller of the Trump Organization, also testified Thursday before the grand jury, people familiar with the investigation said. McConney declined to comment as he left the courthouse.
Calamari is the son of the company’s chief operating officer, Matthew Calamari Sr, a longtime Trump deputy who is also under scrutiny by prosecutors in the Manhattan district attorney’s office. The younger Calamari received transactional immunity for the topics he testified about, in accordance with New York state law. The decision to bring him before the grand jury signals prosecutors do not plan to indict him.
“He appeared today, was immunized and testified truthfully, all of which are required by law,” attorney Nick Gravante said of Calamari Jr. in a statement after the appearance. “He is a model citizen, has never violated any law, and is glad to have this distraction behind him.”​
Calamari Jr. and his father have been under scrutiny by prosecutors over whether they properly paid taxes on subsidized rent and cars they received as benefits from the company, CNN has previously reported.
In recent weeks, the district attorney’s office has been pressuring Calamari Sr., known to be a fiercely loyal employee of the former President, to cooperate, and discussions between prosecutors and his lawyer have continued, one of the people said.
A spokesman for the Manhattan district attorney’s office declined to comment.
McConney, who previously testified before the grand jury, was called back to appear again on Thursday and was expected to be asked to clarify testimony and respond to questions about Calamari Sr., people familiar with the matter said. McConney’s attorney declined to comment.
In July, the district attorney’s office charged the Trump Organization and Chief Financial Officer Allen Weisselberg with a 15-year alleged tax scheme, saying they systematically avoided paying payroll taxes and income taxes on fringe benefits including rent-free apartments, cars and private school tuition. They pleaded not guilty.
Ronald Fischetti, an attorney for Trump, said in a statement Thursday he is confident that Calamari Jr. and McConney “have nothing to say that would help the DA’s case.”
“We are happy that Matt Calamari Jr is going into the grand jury and has immunity. We want him to go into the grand jury and tell the truth,” Fischetti said, casting the investigation as “purely political.”
The-CNN-Wire
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CNN’s Erica Orden and Paul LeBlanc contributed to this report.
