US police on alert ahead of possible Trump arrest
Police in major US cities are bracing for potential unrest if former President Donald Trump is arrested this week in connection with a secret money investigation.
Police in New York, Washington DC and Los Angeles are stepping up their police presence following reports that a Manhattan prosecutor may indict Trump over allegations he paid a porn star to remain silent on the case that they would have had.
It would be the first criminal case brought against a former president in the history of the United States of America.
Steel barricades were erected Monday outside Manhattan Criminal Court, where Trump could be charged, fingerprinted and photographed if charges are brought this week, as US media sources have reported in recent days.
There has also been an increased police presence outside Trump Tower in the city.
All members of the New York Police Department (NYPD), including plainclothes detectives, were ordered to wear their full uniforms on Tuesday and are on standby to mobilize, a police source told CBS News.
According to reports, the NYPD and the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force have been in contact with the US Secret Service, whose job it is to protect presidents and former presidents, about how a possible arrest might take place.
The Stormy Daniels case centers on how Trump repaid his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, after paying Ms Daniels $130,000 to keep quiet ahead of the 2016 presidential election over an alleged affair years earlier with Trump. The former president has denied any such relationship with Ms Daniels.
The record of the payment reimbursing Mr Cohen says it was for ‘legal fees’.
US intelligence officials have detected an increase in online threats against legal and government officials since Trump wrote online Saturday that he expected to be arrested on Tuesday, according to CBS.
Most of the threats were aimed at Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, the man who was expected to press charges against Trump.
On Saturday, the same day Trump announced his supporters were to protest, Mr. Bragg emailed staff.
“We do not tolerate attempts to intimidate our office or threaten the rule of law in New York City,” the prosecutor wrote.
The Stormy Daniels case centers on how Trump repaid his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, after paying Ms Daniels $130,000 to keep quiet ahead of the 2016 presidential election over an alleged affair years earlier with Trump. The former president has denied any such relationship with Ms Daniels.
The FBI said the record of the payment reimbursing Mr. Cohen indicates it was “legal fees”.
