New York Attorney General Letitia James announced that her ongoing civil investigation into the Trump Organization’s financial dealings has unearthed “significant additional evidence” of fraudulent activity by the commercial real estate firm, and she added her office has taken legal action to force former President Donald Trump and his children Donald Trump Jr. and Ivanka Trump to testify in the probe.
What Happened: Eric Trump, another child of the former president, testified in James’ investigation in August 2020, but the other Trumps have refused to cooperate and have taken legal action against James’ office to prevent their participation.
In a press statement, James announced that since Eric Trump’s testimony was entered, her office “has collected significant additional evidence indicating that the Trump Organization used fraudulent or misleading asset valuations to obtain a host of economic benefits, including loans, insurance coverage, and tax deductions.”
She cited six properties, including New York City’s Trump Tower and the Trump Golf Club in Scotland, plus the Trump brand, among the assets that were intentionally miscategorized through questionable valuations and identifications.
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What Happens Next: Although James’ office stressed that it “has not yet reached a final decision regarding whether this evidence merits legal action,” the attorney general did not seem to be giving the Trump family and its’ company any benefit of the doubt.
“Thus far in our investigation, we have uncovered significant evidence that suggests Donald J. Trump and the Trump Organization falsely and fraudulently valued multiple assets and misrepresented those values to financial institutions for economic benefit,” she said.
“The Trumps must comply with our lawful subpoenas for documents and testimony because no one in this country can pick and choose if and how the law applies to them. We will not be deterred in our efforts to continue this investigation and ensure that no one is above the law.”
James, a Democrat who is seeking re-election this year, issued subpoenas for the Trumps on Jan. 3, but Ivanka and Donald Jr. have filed motions to throw out the subpoenas. The former president filed a lawsuit against James last month to stop her civil investigation, claiming that her “her mission is guided solely by political animus and a desire to harass, intimidate, and retaliate against a private citizen who she views as a political opponent.”
James’ investigation is taking place parallel to a separate criminal probe into the Trump Organization's business practices that began in August 2019 by Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr., a Democrat, and is being continued by his successor, Alvin Bragg, who was sworn into office on Jan. 1. James joined that probe last May.
Photo: Gage Skidmore/Flickr Creative Commons
