Jury indict Trump and 18 odas over alleged plan to manipulate election result for Georgia

Former US President Donald Trump don dey charged wit attempting to change im 2020 election loss for di state of Georgia.

Im and 18 odas don dey indicted on counts wey include racketeering inside a 41-charge document wey Fulton County grand jury issue.

Di indictment mark di fourth time oga Trump don dey criminally charged dis year alone.

Im deny di accusations in all di cases.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis launch investigation for February 2021 into allegations of election meddling against Trump and im associates.

Di list of defendants dem indict late on Monday night include former Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani, former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, former White House lawyer John Eastman and a former justice department official, Jeffrey Clark.

Di indictment say di alleged co-conspirators "knowingly and willfully join a conspiracy to unlawfully change di outcome of di election in favor of Trump".

Di charge sheet also refer to di defendants as a "criminal organization", accusing dem of a number of crimes, including:

Di most serious charge, violating di Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (Rico) Act, dey punishable by a maximum of 20 years in prison.

Di act – dey designed to help take down organised criminal syndicates like di mafia - help prosecutors connect di dots between underlings wey break laws and those wey give dem marching orders.

Trump, currently di frontrunner for di Republican Party race to pick dia next candidate for di White House, say di investigation by Ms Willis, a Democrat, dey politically motivated.

For statement, di Trump campaign describe di district attorney as a "rabid partisan" wey file "these bogus indictments" to interfere wit di 2024 presidential race and "damage di dominant Trump campaign".

"Dis latest co-ordinated strike by a biased prosecutor for Democrat jurisdiction no only betray di trust of di American pipo, but also expose di true motivation wey dey drivr dia fabricated accusations," di statement tok.

Confusion bin dey earlier on Monday wen a list of a criminal charges against oga Trump appear on one Fulton County website bifor di grand jury even vote to return an indictment.

Di filing say Trump bin dey charged wit racketeering, conspiracy to commit fraud and making false statements.

Tok-tok pesin for for Ms Willis say di document dey "fictitious" but no explain how e end up on di court website.

Trump and im allies seize on di apparent clerical error to claim say dem rig di process.

Trump dey already charged by federal prosecutors in Washington DC wit conspiring to overturn di 2020 election, wey e lose to President Joe Biden, a Democrat. Dat charge sheet devote significant time to di Trump team activities in Georgia.

Ms Willis investigation focus specifically on Georgia, a key battleground state for di US presidency wey oga Trump narrowly lose.

In January 2021, dem record Trump on a phone call wen e dey tell Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger to "find" 11,780 votes, di number e go need to beat Biden in dat state.

At least eight "fake electors", wey sign bogus certificate claiming sey Trump win di election in dat state, don reach immunity deals in di case afta dem agree to interviews wit Fulton County prosecutors.