Michael Cohen, President Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer and a key witness in New York cases against him, said Friday that prosecutors pressured and coerced him into providing testimony that he believes aimed to secure convictions and judgments against Trump.
Cohen made this claim in a post on Substack and in comments reported by several outlets. He stated that prosecutors from both the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office and the New York Attorney General’s Office sought information that fit their theories. They often asked leading questions when his answers did not support their narrative.
“From the time I first began meeting with lawyers from the Manhattan DA’s Office and the New York Attorney General’s Office in connection with their investigations of President Trump, and through the trials, I felt pressured and coerced to provide only information and testimony that would satisfy the government’s desire to build cases against and secure judgments and convictions against President Trump,” Cohen wrote.
Cohen’s statement marks a shift in tone from his earlier role as a cooperating witness and frequent Trump critic. He testified publicly about Trump’s business practices and was a key witness for the prosecution in Trump’s New York hush money trial, where Trump was convicted in 2024 on 34 felony counts.
In his new account, Cohen expressed the belief that prosecutors wanted testimony that would help them win, dismissing or downplaying any information that did not support their case. “When my testimony was insufficient for a point the prosecution sought to make, prosecutors often asked inappropriate leading questions to elicit answers that matched their narrative,” Cohen wrote, as reported.
Cohen said he cooperated in the investigations and trials with the hope that prosecutors would view his assistance favorably after his prison sentence. He pleaded guilty in 2018 to federal charges related to campaign finance violations tied to hush money payments and tax offenses, serving time as a result.
Cohen’s allegations emerged as Trump’s legal team continues to pursue litigation related to the hush money case. Fox News reported that Cohen shared his views as Trump looks to have his request to move the case into federal court reviewed by an appeals court.
The New York Attorney General’s Office secured a civil fraud judgment against Trump and his company, which Trump has appealed. The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office prosecuted the hush money case. These offices did not immediately respond to Cohen’s claims reported in his post.
Trump seized on Cohen’s remarks as new evidence that the prosecutions were politically motivated. Newsweek reported that Trump attacked the New York cases and portrayed Cohen’s new claims as support for his complaints about the investigations.
BREAKING 🚨 Donald Trump said Michael Cohen said he was ‘COERCED’ by Letitia James and Alvin Bragg
THIS IS ABSOLUTELY WILD pic.twitter.com/HYMoOyBhAV
— MAGA Voice (@MAGAVoice) January 17, 2026
Cohen’s credibility has long been a key issue in legal proceedings regarding Trump. At Trump’s hush money trial, prosecutors argued that Cohen’s insider role allowed him to explain reimbursements and communications connected to the payments. Meanwhile, the defense highlighted Cohen’s previous lies and criminal record. The Associated Press described Cohen as a crucial witness whose past also made him a challenging one, noting that Trump’s lawyers repeatedly questioned his character during cross-examination.
Cohen’s new allegations do not alter the official record of his sworn testimony, but they add another layer to the political debate over the New York prosecutions as Trump campaigns toward the 2026 midterm cycle and continues to fight against convictions and civil penalties imposed before his return to office.
Cohen did not provide documentary evidence in his post to support his claim that prosecutors demanded tailored answers, apart from his descriptions of meetings and questioning. However, his comments were quickly echoed in right-leaning media and by Trump allies who argued that the New York prosecutions represented an abuse of power.
