New York, 31 May 2024 (dpa/MIA) - A jury in New York on Thursday found Donald Trump guilty of falsifying business records in his hush money trial, making him the first former US president convicted of a criminal offence.

Trump, who is seeking the White House again in this November's election, was charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records as part of a scheme involving his former lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen to conceal a $130,000 pay-off made to porn star Stormy Daniels.

Judge Juan Merchan is set to announce Trump's sentence on July 11. The former president faces a maximum of several years behind bars, but most legal experts expect he will get a fine.

After the verdict, Trump described his conviction a "disgrace," claiming without any evidence that Merchan was "corrupt." "The real verdict is gonna be November 5th by the people," he added, referencing the date of the US presidential election.

"I am a very innocent man," Trump added.

Daniels said the money was given to keep her quiet about an affair she had with the Republican in 2006. He has admitted to paying her on the eve of the 2016 election to stop her "false and extortionist accusations" but denies any sexual encounter.

At the trial, Cohen testified over the course of several days that he worked at Trump's direction to orchestrate the payments to buy the silence of Daniels.

Cohen made the $130,000 payment out of his own pocket. At the crux of the case was how Trump's real estate company falsely logged the reimbursements to Cohen in its financial records and whether Trump had full knowledge of the scheme.

Crucially, the prosecution argued that because the pay-off was made to keep the public from learning about the alleged sexual encounter ahead of the election, the cover-up involving the financial records amounted to illegal campaign financing. This allegation elevated what would have been a lower-level misdemeanour case to felony charges.

Trump has claimed without any evidence that he is a victim of political persecution orchestrated by Democrats to keep him from the White House. The Constitution does not prevent a felon from running for the presidency.