Here’s everything you need to know about New York Attorney General Letitia James’ Donald Trump lawsuit.
On Wednesday (September 21), New York Attorney General (AG) Letitia James filed a civil fraud lawsuit against former U.S. President Donald Trump, alleging that he inflated his net worth by billions of dollars in order to get better loans, insurance, and tax breaks.
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Why did Letitia James file a lawsuit against Trump and his family?
James, a Democrat and longtime Trump critic, claimed in the more than 200-page lawsuit that her investigation going on for the past three years into former president Trump’s financial activities revealed that he “engaged in numerous acts of fraud and misrepresentation” in the preparation of his annual financial statements between the years 2011 and 2021. According to the lawsuit, “they are the result of the Defendants employing objectively false assumptions and blatantly improper methodologies.”
In the lawsuit, Trump and his children, Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump, and Ivanka Trump, are named as defendants.
James’ office now seeks $250 million from Trump as part of the civil lawsuit, which is the estimated amount that the former president allegedly made from the fraud. James also wants Trump and his adult children barred from ever serving as officers or directors in a New York-registered business. Finally, she wants to bar Trump and the Trump Organization from making real estate purchases in New York for the next five years.
“This conduct cannot be brushed aside and dismissed as some sort of good-faith mistake,” James said at a news conference in New York.
“The statements of financial condition were greatly exaggerated, grossly inflated, objectively false, and therefore fraudulent and illegal,” she added. “And as a result of that we are seeking relief, and Mr. Trump, the Trump Organization, his family — they should all be held accountable.”
Donald Trump lied more than 200 times about the value of his assets, claims Letitia James
According to Letitia James’ lawsuit, former President Donald Trump made “scores of fraudulent, false, and misleading representations” over a 10-year period, highlighting “200 false and misleading valuations” of Trump’s assets.
“The financial statements in question were issued annually; each contained a significant number of fraudulent, false, and misleading representations about a great many of the Trump Organization‘s assets; and most played a role in particular transactions with financial institutions,” the lawsuit alleges.
“The number of grossly inflated asset values is staggering,” the suit adds.
“Racist” and “grossly incompetent”- Donald Trump slams Letitia James for lawsuit
Former President Donald Trump blasted New York Attorney General Letitia James on social media Thursday, calling her “racist” and “grossly incompetent,” just one day after she filed a massive fraud lawsuit against him and his family members.
Trump called James “a terrible A.G. when it comes to protecting the people of New York State” in a post on Truth Social, and praised her Republican campaign rival, Michael Henry, as a “strong crime fighter.” He also shared a number of James-related attacks from news outlets and other social media accounts.
Attorneys for former President Trump issued a statement in response to the New York attorney general’s lawsuit alleging business fraud, calling it a “unchecked abuse of authority” that is “focused on advancing the attorney general’s political agenda.”
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