Trump Is Threatening Michael Cohen’s Father-In-Law With Investigation

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By Alyssa Fisher January 24, 2019

The threats that are keeping Michael Cohen from testifying in front of Congress next month are being directed at this father-in-law, The New York Times reported.

Cohen, President Trump’s former lawyer and fixer, postponed his February testimony on Wednesday. His lawyer, Lanny Davis, said Trump has been threatening Cohen, as well as suggesting that one of his relatives could be investigate for unspecified crimes.

“And not only was he intimidated, but he believes his family also has been intimidated and threatened,” Davis said.

Trump denied the claim and told reporters that Cohen was “threatened by the truth.”

However, he has repeatedly suggested on Twitter that Cohen’s family could be investigated, according to the Times. The president has also specifically referenced Cohen’s father-in-law, Fima Shusterman, and his Eastern European background to imply that he has ties to organized crime.

There is no evidence of this, but Shusterman was sentenced to probation after pleading guilty in 1993 to cashing $5.5 million in checks to evade federal reporting requirements.

Cohen reportedly has told friends that Shusterman came to the United States in the early 1970s to escape religious persecution in Ukraine. He is now a retiree.

Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison for fraud, lying to Congress and other crimes last month.

Alyssa Fisher is a news writer at the Forward. Email her at fisher@forward.com, or follow her on Twitter at @alyssalfisher

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