The Manhattan Criminal Court, where Trump will appear before the judge, was filled with members of the press a day in advance.
Police surrounded the court area with iron barriers and took extensive security measures, while streets and avenues in the court area were closed to traffic.
Trump denies the charges
Trump left Trump Tower on 5th Avenue under intense security measures and arrived at the court at around 13.30 local time.
Trump was accompanied by a secret service convoy, while a New York Police helicopter and media helicopters broadcasting live were following him from the air.
Trump, who stayed in court for nearly 2 hours, was charged with 34 separate charges, according to sources briefing the US press.
At least one of the charges is a “felony” and the others are related to “hush money payments” and related falsification of campaign and workplace records.
According to the photos taken from the court, Trump, who listened to the accusations against him with his 4 lawyers, reportedly denied all 34 charges against him.
After the court, Trump left for LaGuardia airport to go to his mansion in Florida with his private plane under intense security measures.
Trump is expected to make a statement about the charges against him at Mar-a-Lago this evening around 20.15 local time.
Pro- and anti-Trump demonstrators gather in front of the court
Meanwhile, small groups of anti-Trump and pro-Trump supporters took their places in the park in front of the building reserved for them with police barriers since the morning hours.
There were occasional verbal and physical altercations and brawls between people carrying placards calling for Trump’s support or punishment.
A Trump supporter, who gave his name as Dion, told AA that Manhattan Attorney General Bragg should focus on crimes in New York instead of Trump, saying, “Bragg is leaving criminals on the street by spending all his energy on Trump.”
Anti-Trump Zachary Machado, who was in the other part of the park, argued that Trump’s actions should not be tolerated and said, “Trump is a horrible person and should be punished for his actions. He should face justice just as justice is applied to all of us.”
Trump announced that he expects to be arrested in connection with the investigation, and despite his earlier call for protests and support, Trump supporters did not exceed 20-30 people.
Trump, a candidate for the 2024 presidential elections in the US, was indicted by a grand jury on March 18 as a result of the Manhattan District Attorney’s investigation into the payment of hush money to adult film star Stormy Daniels during the 2016 presidential election.
Reacting to the charges as a “political witch hunt”, Trump flew from his Florida estate to New York yesterday to testify.
There are reports in the US media that the indictment against Trump includes more than 30 charges.
Trump is the first former president in American history to appear before a judge on the charges against him.
