Donald Trump has been found guilty on all counts in his historic New York criminal trial, becoming the first former or sitting president to be convicted of a crime as he makes a bid to return to the White House.
The panel of 12 Manhattan jurors reached their unanimous verdict on Thursday after two weeks of deliberations and a six-week trial.
The court heard from more than 20 witnesses, including Stormy Daniels, whose alleged sexual encounter with the former president was at the centre of the case.
Trump, 77, called the verdict a “disgrace”, adding: “We’ll fight to the end.”
The former president was accused of concealing a payment to buy the silence of Ms Daniels, a former adult-film star, in the final days of his 2016 election campaign.
He will be sentenced on 11 July – just days before the Republican National Convention, when he will be confirmed as the party’s White House candidate.
While he could in theory face prison, a financial penalty is seen as the more likely punishment following Thursday’s unanimous verdict. For now, Trump has been released on his own recognisance.
The former president pursed his lips as the jurors confirmed the guilty counts on all 34 charges, turning his head to look at them.
Amid a massive police presence outside court afterwards, Trump said: “This was a disgrace, this was a rigged trial by a conflicted judge who was corrupt.”
As he spoke, hundreds of onlookers gathered and a helicopter circled overhead.
He was expected to speak again to media in front of Trump Tower in New York City on Friday morning.
