Ex-Trump lawyer Cohen says job was to cover up boss's 'dirty deeds', sentenced to 3 years in prison

Michael Cohen, the former personal lawyer of US President Donald Trump has been sentenced to 3 years in jail for his role in the payment of hush money to women who said they had affairs with Trump and for lying to Congress about a proposed Trump Tower project in Russia discussed during the 2016 election campaign.

Cohen, who once said he’d take a bullet for the president, said on Wednesday that his job was to cover up his boss's "dirty deeds".

In a blistering attack on his former boss in federal court, Cohen said he was taking responsibility for his crimes "including those implicating the President of the United States of America". 

Cohen pleaded for leniency in the court on Wednesday for the multiple charges levelled against him.

Cohen's lawyers had asked for no jail time after he pleaded guilty to tax evasion, making false statements to a financial institution, illegal campaign contributions, and making false statements to Congress.

But the judge sentenced Cohen to three years in jail.

The 52-year-old former lawyer walked into federal court in downtown Manhattan with his wife, son and daughter.

He pleaded guilty in August to charges by federal prosecutors in New York that, just before the election, he paid adult film actress Stormy Daniels $130,000 and helped arrange a $150,000 payment to former Playboy model Karen McDougal so the women would keep quiet about their past relationships with Trump, who is married. Trump denies having the affairs.

Prosecutors say the hush money payments violated campaign finance laws and they concurred with Cohen's assertion that the payments were directed by Trump, implicating Trump in a possible campaign finance law violation.

(With inputs from agencies)