New York Attorney General Sues Donald Trump and Three of His Kids for Fraud [Video]

Simone September 21, 2022 News Leave a comment

Wednesday, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced a sweeping lawsuit filed against former president Donald Trump, three of his adult children and the Trump Organization, alleging they enriched themselves through “numerous acts of fraud and misrepresentations.” The announcement is the latest development in a three-year investigation into the company’s business practices.

The civil suit that was filed in State Supreme Court in Manhattan is seeking a $250 million judgment and to bar Trump and the children named in the lawsuit, Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump, and Ivanka Trump, from serving as the director of a business registered in New York state for five years. It also seeks to bar them from receiving loans from any New York registered financial institution for five years. The suit alleges that for over ten years, the Trumps participated in more than 200 instances of fraud.

“These acts of fraud and misrepresentation were similar in nature, were committed by upper management at the Trump Organization as part of a common endeavor for each annual Statement, and were approved at the highest levels of the Trump Organization — including by Mr. Trump himself,” the lawsuit states.

In its 220-page suit, the attorney general lays out how Trump participated in years of large-scale fraud. It alleges Trump inflated his personal net worth in order to attract favorable loan agreements. Among other allegations, the Trump Organization is accused of deceiving lenders, insurers and tax authorities by inflating the value of his properties using misleading appraisals or deflating them to pay less taxes.

“For too long, powerful, wealthy people in this country have operated as if the rules do not apply to them,” James said. “Donald Trump stands out as among the most egregious examples of this misconduct. With the help of his children and senior executives at the Trump Organization, Donald Trump falsely inflated his net worth by billions of dollars to unjustly enrich himself and cheat the system.”

The lawsuit also names two Trump Organization executives, Allan Weisselberg, who pleaded guilty last month to unrelated criminal charges of tax evasion and Jeff McConney.

Following the attorney general’s announcement, Don Jr. took to Twitter to label it a “witch hunt.”