Trump’s fraud trial judge demands answers about Weisselberg’s alleged courtroom lies

The judge overseeing Donald Trump’s sprawling civil fraud case in New York wants answers following reports that one of the former president’s co-defendants is arranging a plea deal with Manhattan prosecutors on a perjury charge for lying in his courtroom.

In a message to attorneys on Monday, New York County Supreme Court Judge Arthur Engoron said he wants to know whether the Trump Organization’s former chief financial officer Allen Weisselberg is now “changing his tune” and admitting to lying under oath during the fraud trial.

As Judge Engoron prepares a final judgment in the case,The New York Times reported that the disgraced executive is negotiating a plea deal with the Manhattan district attorney’s office on a perjury charge.

Following the report, the judge sent an email to Manhattan prosecutors, attorneys for fraud trial defendants, and lawyers with the office of New York Attorney General Letitia James, who brought the initial lawsuit against Mr Trump, his adult sons and their chief associates.

“As the presiding magistrate, the trier of fact, and the judge of credibility, I of course want to know whether Mr Weisselberg is now changing his tune, and whether he is admitting he lied under oath in my courtroom at this trial,” Judge Engoron wrote.

“I do not want to ignore anything in a case of this magnitude.”

The judge suggested that if Weisselberg is found to have lied about one element in his testimony, he could treat the rest of his testimony as unreliable – a finding that could risk a judgment against Mr Trump and his co-defendants in a case that threatens to imperil his real estate empire and land the defendants with tens of millions of dollars in sanctions.

The judge asked for the parties to tell him “anything you