Donald Trump will not be handcuffed when he surrenders next week in New York to face criminal charges, his defence lawyer has said.

Joe Tacopina said he expected the arrest to proceed as a matter of routine on Tuesday, when Mr Trump is due to appear to face an indictment following a grand jury investigation of a hush money payment to porn star Stormy Daniels during his 2016 campaign.

“I don't know how all this is going to go down. There's no textbook to see how you arraign a former president of the United States in criminal court,” Mr Tacopina said.

New York court officials confirmed that Mr Trump would be arraigned on Tuesday afternoon.

Mr Tacopina said the former president and his defence team were “shocked” by news of the indictment. He added Mr Trump is “upset” and “angry” but not worried.

The specific charges against Mr Trump are not yet known as the indictment remains under seal, but reports indicate he faces more than 30 counts.

The news is set to shake the race for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, in which Mr Trump is a front-runner according to many polls. (Evening Standard)

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