Donald Trump and His Sons Penalized for Committing Billion Dollar Financial Fraud in NY
Donald Trump, his two adult sons, and the Trump Organization are being charged with inflating the worth of their properties by almost $2 billion (£1.65 billion) to benefit their business, according to New York Attorney General Letitia James. She stated that the defendants made fake financial and accounting documents to obtain better loan and insurance terms and reduce their tax obligations. Judge Arthur Engoron of the New York state court delivered the harsh sentence on Tuesday after Ms. James requested a summary judgment before the trial started. She suggested that establishing some facts as undisputed would expedite the trial, reports BBC.
The business licenses that permitted the Trump Organization to run some of its New York properties were also withdrawn by the judge. James is currently asking for $250 million in fines as well as Trump and his sons' dismissal from the Trump Organization, the family business empire. In his ruling, Judge Engoron stated "The documents here clearly contain fraudulent valuations that defendants used in business". "That is a fantasy world, not the real world," he wrote.
Although his corporation will remain in business, this might put an end to his authority over recognizable New York buildings like the Trump Tower and the Trump Building at 40 Wall Street. “Today, a judge ruled in our favor and found that Donald Trump and the Trump Organization engaged in years of financial fraud,” attorney James said in a statement. “We look forward to presenting the rest of our case at trial.”
The judge also turned down the Trump team's plea to have the lawsuit dismissed and separately penalized five of Trump's attorneys with $7,500 each for supporting their clients' "obstreperous" behavior by offering "preposterous" arguments that the court had already rejected. The ruling was deemed "a miscarriage of justice" by the Republican leader's attorneys, who also announced they would file an appeal.
The former president has consistently denied any wrongdoing and claimed on Tuesday that the indictment was the result of yet another political "witch hunt" by a prosecutor who was biased against him. The judge, he claimed, was "highly politicized." With his lawsuit against the court, Trump is still attempting to postpone the New York trial. A decision is expected this week from an appeals court. If the court rules against him, the business tycoon and political figure will need to appear in court to finish the rest of the case.
The Republican front-runner is engaged in several court fights as he prepares to take on President Joe Biden in a rematch of the 2016 presidential election and maybe win the presidency again. As per Firstpost, In a series of statements, Trump criticized the new ruling, calling it "un-American" and a continuous scheme to harm his reelection campaign.
“My Civil rights have been violated, and some Appellate Court, whether federal or state, must reverse this horrible, un-American decision,” he wrote on his Truth Social site. He insisted his company had “done a magnificent job for New York State” and “done business perfectly,” calling it “A very sad Day for the New York State System of Justice!”
