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Former personal lawyer of the United States President Donald Trump, Michael Cohen, testified on Tuesday that Trump had directed him to commit a crime by arranging payments ahead of the 2016 presidential election to silence two women who claimed to have had affairs with Trump.

The statements were made by the 57-year-old Cohen, as he pleaded guilty to eight criminal charges in Manhattan's federal court, including bank fraud, tax evasion, and campaign finance violations. Cohen though did not name Trump in court, yet his attorney, Lanny Davis, said subsequently that he was mentioning the president.

"Today he (Cohen) stood up and testified under oath that Donald Trump directed him to commit a crime by making payments to two women for the principal purpose of influencing an election," Davis said in a statement.

"If those payments were a crime for Michael Cohen, then why wouldn't they be a crime for Donald Trump?" Davis said.

With an intent to silence two women, the two payments were made who claimed to have had affairs with Trump and were made earlier to the 2016 presidential election. One was for $130,000 grant to American adult-film star Stormy Daniels, whereas, the other for $150,000 related to former Playboy model Karen McDougal.

Trump has denied having affairs with the women. His lawyer Rudy Giuliani has said the payments were made to spare Trump and his family embarrassment and were unrelated to the campaign. Trump did not mention Cohen at a rally in West Virginia hours after his former attorney accused him of violating campaign finance laws.

Giuliani lashed out at Cohen on Tuesday, calling him a "devious little rat" and saying he has a history of lying. "I think the president is absolutely in the clear," Giuliani told Reuters. "The Cohen thing is over."

Cohen, who was one of Trump's closest associates for over a decade, said in court that he arranged to make payments "for (the) principal purpose of influencing (the) election" at the direction of a candidate for federal office.

Robert Khuzami, a prosecutor for the Manhattan U.S. Attorney's Office, said of Cohen: "He worked to pay money to silence two women who had information that he believed would be detrimental to the 2016 campaign and to the candidate."

Khuzami told reporters that Cohen sought reimbursement for the money by submitting "sham" invoices for legal services to the candidate's company.

Judge William Pauley III said during the hearing said Cohen's plea deal includes a possible sentence of up to five years and three months in prison. Sentencing was scheduled by Pauley for December 12 and set bail at $500,000.

Even after the election, Cohen, who worked as Trump's personal attorney at the Trump Organization, continued to advise the president, but in recent months their relationship has frayed.

By Sowmya Sangam