The Trump Organization, the conglomerate owned by the family of former US President Donald Trump, is today the target of a criminal investigation, New York State Attorney Letitia James said on Tuesday. She will now investigate jointly with Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, who has been leading a civil investigation into suspicions of tax evasion and insurance fraud targeting the Trump Organization for more than two years.
But what is it concretely about in this case? What suspicions weigh on Donald Trump and his family? Explanations.
Trump Organization valuation fraud
The New York State prosecutor began her investigation after Michael Cohen testified before Congress in 2019. Donald Trump’s former lawyer then assured that, in his annual tax returns, the former president had increased the value of some of his possessions to secure loans and obtain favorable insurance, while decreasing the value of other properties to reduce the property taxes to which they were logically subject.
It is precisely on these suspicions, which suggest that the Trump Organization may have inflated or decreased the value of certain goods, that Letitia James is investigating.
A number of properties owned by the Trump Organization are in its sights, namely the Seven Springs Estate in Westchester County in New York, a corporate building in the heart of Manhattan, the Trump International Hotel and Tower in Chicago. , as well as the Trump National Golf Club in Los Angeles.
The New York attorney’s office is also investigating possible fraud concerning the compensation of employees of the conglomerate.
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A “possible criminal and prolonged conduct”
For his part, Manhattan prosecutor Cyrus Vance has been investigating for two years the “possible criminal and prolonged conduct” of the conglomerate of the family of the former president.
The prosecutor’s investigation originally focused on payments made before the 2016 presidential election to two alleged mistresses of the Republican billionaire. It then extended to suspicions of tax evasion, insurance fraud and bank fraud by the Trump Organization.
Today, the prosecutor’s office is investigating in particular whether the company has given false information to loan or insurance companies concerning the value of the possessions of the former president of his family, and thus to verify whether the Trump Organization has paid enough taxes.
To do this, Cyrus Vance’s team examines millions of pages of documents, which include Trump’s tax returns in recent years. A precious sesame obtained last February but that the Manhattan prosecutor had been asking for since August 2019. While the former US president was battling to prevent the transmission of his documents …
For his part, former Donald Trump lawyer Michael Cohen welcomed the criminal qualification of the New York prosecutor’s investigation:
As more documents are reviewed by the Attorney General and District Attorney, it looks like trouble is just beginning for Donald Trump.
Soon Donald and his associates will be held accountable for their actions! Michael cohen
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“A witch hunt”, according to Trump
The Trump Organization has so far not reacted to the recent opening of a criminal investigation against him.
But Donald Trump, who left the White House in January, had previously said the civil investigation against him was politically motivated, not least because it is being led by prosecutor Cyrus Vance, a Democrat. He denied any wrongdoing and called the investigation “a continuation of the biggest political witch hunt in the history of our country.”
But in the eyes of BBC News reporter Will Grant, New York Attorney General Letitia James has opened a criminal investigation because she “clearly believes there is enough evidence at stake.” This criminal dimension, moreover, that the former American head of state and the Trump Organization face much harsher penalties if the suspicions of fraud prove to be correct.
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