President Donald Trump’s embattled former personal attorney has been spotted storming out of a Manhattan restaurant to take an urgent call, as speculation mounts over whether he will cooperate with federal investigators.
Pacing up and down East 64th Street on Friday night, Cohen spoke emphatically into his cell phone outside of the upscale eatery Jo Jo, interrupting his dinner for the mystery call.
The restaurant, the original flagship of famed chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, is just a quick six-minute walk from the Regency Hotel, where Cohen has been living at least since an April raid by federal prosecutors.
Though Cohen has remained mum on the investigation and insists on his innocence, whispers that he might turn state’s witness have turned him into the unlikely darling of New York City’s liberal elite, who hope he could be the key to Trump’s downfall.
A photographer spotted Michael Cohen (above) pacing up and down the sidewalk speaking on his phone outside of upscale Manhattan restaurant Jo Jo on Friday night
Cohen interrupted his dinner for the urgent mystery call, appearing emphatic as he spoke
Earlier this week, a woman chased Cohen down the city’s sidewalks, shouting that he could be a national hero if he testifies against Trump, according to a report in Vanity Fair.
‘He could go down in history as the man that saved this country,’ another person said in a message they attempted to pass to Cohen last week, the report said. ‘I think his family would be so proud of him.’
The guarded praise is a far cry from months past, when Trump’s detractors pulled no punches in deriding his longtime attorney Cohen as a ‘thug’, ‘criminal’ and ‘moron’.
In April, based on a referral from Special Counsel Robert Mueller, federal investigators from the Southern District of New York raided Cohen’s home, office and hotel while probing allegations of bank fraud, wire fraud and campaign finance issues.
Trump’s foes hope that the millions of documents seized in the raids will offer a treasure trove of damning evidence against the President, given Cohen’s years of intimate involvement representing both the Trump Organization and Trump personally.
Attorney-client privilege will likely provide the barest of shields, given reports that a special master in charge of sifting through the documents has determined that only 161 of nearly 4million seized documents are protected by privilege.
Cohen is seen leaving court in April. Speculation is mounting over whether he will cooperate with federal prosecutors as a potential indictment looms over his head
Cohen has yet to speak with prosecutors, though, and remains mum on his thoughts about cooperating with investigators, three of his friends told Vanity Fair.
Yet there are signs for the faithful that Cohen may not remain the die-hard Trump loyalist that he has for years been viewed as.
Last week, Cohen retweeted a photo of himself and avowed Trump nemesis Tom Arnold, who is filming a show for Vice about his hunt for tapes that would be damaging to the President.
Cohen insisted that he’d merely run into Arnold in the lobby of the Regency and posed for a fan photo of sorts. But Arnold, in a series of bizarre and rambling television interviews, claimed that Cohen was working with him on the anti-Trump show.
The rumor mill also kicked into high gear following a report last week that Cohen had dumped his attorney in favor of Guy Petrillo, the former head of the Southern District’s criminal division – the type of insider who might be perfect for cutting a deal.
Trump himself has shrugged off concern about a potential plea deal for Cohen, telling reporters earlier this month: ‘I’m not worried because I did nothing wrong.’
Cohen sparked speculation by retweeting this photo with Trump nemesis Tom Arnold
Porn star Stormy Daniels (above) was supposed to meet with prosecutors last Monday in reference to the investigation into Cohen, but the meeting was abruptly cancelled
The state of the investigation into Cohen remains opaque, but could be moving toward a grand jury.
On Monday, prosecutors abruptly cancelled a meeting with porn star Stormy Daniels after the media got wind of it. The meeting was believed to be grand jury prep.
The key allegations against Cohen are thought to stem from his $130,000 payment to Daniels, what she claims was hush money to cover up a 2006 liaison with Trump. Investigators believe the payment may have violated campaign finance laws.
For his part, Cohen on Thursday issued a searing statement blasting his detractors.
‘My family & I are owed an apology,’ Cohen wrote on Twitter.
‘After 2 years, 15 hours of testimony before House & Senate under oath & producing more than 1000 documents, dossier misreports 15 allegations about me,’ he continued, in an apparent reference to British ex-spy Christopher Steele’s Democrat-funded ‘dirty dossier’.
‘My entire statement must be quoted- I had nothing to do with Russian collusion or meddling!’
