The New York State Attorney’s investigation into the Trump Organization has uncovered evidence that appears to establish tax evasion practices, including the overvaluation and then undervaluation of certain assets, her office said on Tuesday evening. .
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According to a New York Supreme Court document, signed by Attorney Letitia James, the Trump Organization’s legal owner, former President Donald Trump, had “decision-making power over a wide range of practices to the Trump Organization, including misrepresentations to third parties, including financial institutions and the US tax authorities (IRS).
Letitia James, who wants to hear in this case Donald Trump and his children Ivanka and Donald Junior, stressed that they should be forced to testify.
“Until January 2017, Mrs. (Ivanka) Trump was the primary contact for the Trump Organization’s largest creditor, Deutsche Bank. In connection with this position, Mrs. Trump was at the origin of the sending to Deutsche Bank and the federal State of erroneous financial documents”, according to the court document.
The text also specifies that “since 2017, Donald Trump Junior had authority over numerous documents containing false asset estimates”, in particular a suite located in Trump Tower, declared three times larger than its true size and whose the value was overstated by $200 million.
The Trump family accuses Democratic Party prosecutor Letitia James of political motivations and called her actions a “threat to our democracy.”
Donald Trump, Ivanka and Donald Junior have already been summoned to appear at the beginning of January, as part of this large-scale investigation launched in March 2019 by Ms. James, but the ex-president had responded by sending the prosecutor a 20-page motion intended to “break” these subpoenas.
“The Trumps must bow to our legal subpoenas for documents and testimony because no one in this country can choose if and how the law applies to them. We will not be hindered in our efforts to pursue this investigation and ensure that no one is above the law,” Ms. James said in a statement.
Letitia James has suspected for nearly three years that the Trump Organization fraudulently overstated the value of certain properties when applying for loans from banks and understated those same properties to the taxman in order to pay less tax. .
Eric Trump, another son of the Republican billionaire and vice-president of the Trump Organization, was heard by Ms. James’ services in October 2020.
Donald Trump is also the subject of other investigations in the United States.
He was heard on October 18 in a case in which protesters accuse his security service of molesting them six years ago.
His group is also the target of an investigation led by the Manhattan district attorney on suspicion of financial crimes and insurance fraud.
In July, the Trump Organization and its trusty accountant, Allen Weisselberg, pleaded not guilty in a New York court to 15 counts of fraud and tax evasion. The trial is due to start in mid-2022.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump is fighting to avoid having to divulge years of tax returns to prosecutors, while in Washington a special congressional committee is seeking access to White House documents on the attack on the Capitol, January 6, 2021.
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