Feds Investigating Former Trump Attorney for Bank Fraud Over Melrose CU Loans
The former CU CEO declines to comment on any possible relationship between the Cohen investigation and the NCUA charges against him.
Federal officials are investigating Michael Cohen, President Trump’s former personal attorney, for possible bank and tax fraud violations in connection with $20 million in loans he obtained from Melrose Credit Union and Sterling National Bank, The New York Times reported Sunday.
The probe centers on allegations that Cohen misrepresented his assets when he obtained the loans, the newspaper reported.
Federal investigators also are investigating how he handled income from taxi medallions he owned and whether he failed to report it to the Internal Revenue Service the Times said.
The allegations and investigation of Cohen are not related to the NCUA’s decision this month to file an administrative complaint against Alan S. Kaufman, the former CEO of Melrose Credit Union, an agency spokesman said.
He said the NCUA could not comment further on the Kaufman allegations.
In filing the administrative charges, the NCUA provided a laundry list of allegations against Kaufman, who was removed from his positions at the credit union in 2016, including benefits he received from people receiving credit union loans.
Kaufman declined in an email exchange to comment on any possible relationship between the Cohen investigation and the NCUA charges against him.
The New York Department of Financial Services took over the credit union last year. Melrose was heavily involved in making loans using taxi medallions as collateral in New York, Chicago, Philadelphia and Miami. As Uber and other services have grown, the value of those medallions has dropped.
Many news organizations have reported that federal authorities are attempting to use possible criminal charges against Cohen as leverage in convincing them to cooperate in their investigations of Trump.