Donald Trump's ex-lawyer Michael Cohen jailed

Donald Trump's ex-lawyer has been jailed for three years.

Michael Cohen pleaded guilty in August to eight counts of campaign finance violations, tax evasion, bank fraud and tax fraud, relating to his time as Mr Trump's lawyer between 2006 and 2018.

Cohen also said Mr Trump ordered him to pay hush-money to porn stars so they wouldn't talk about their alleged affairs with him during his ultimately successful 2016 presidential campaign.

And in November Cohen pleaded guilty to lying to the US Senate about what he knew of Mr Trump's plans to build a tower in the Russian capital of Moscow. Special counsel Robert Mueller has been investigating Mr Trump's campaign and its alleged ties to foreign powers for the past 18 months.

Cohen, 52, will report to prison in March to begin his sentence.

He told the sentencing judge Mr Trump made him "follow a path of darkness rather than light", BBC News reports.

"[I] felt it was my duty to cover up his dirty deeds."

The sentencing covered two different cases - one brought by Mr Mueller's team, the other by the Southern District of New York.

Cohen did not talk to media outside the courtroom.

"Michael Cohen is now released to tell the full truth," Cohen adviser Lanny Davis told ABC News

"After Mr Mueller makes his findings and issues his report, you will see more of Michael Cohen telling the truth about Donald Trump."

Federal investigators raided Cohen's home in April, and the next month his employment with Mr Trump was terminated.

The pair have since had a public falling out, with Mr Trump repeatedly attacking his former counsel on social media site Twitter.

Mr Trump initially denied knowing anything about the payments to porn stars Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal, then admitted he did know, and recently said they were a "private transaction" that had nothing to do with his campaign.

Newshub.