Lunacy: Letitia James wants $370 MILLION from Trump and to BAR him from doing business in New York

Kelly Laco
The Daily Mail
Sat, 06 Jan 2024 21:23 UTC

© AP/Getty Images

New York State Attorney General Letitia James

New York Attorney General Letitia James is demanding over $370 million from Donald Trump and wants to bar him from doing any business in the state as the explosive civil fraud trial into his family's business practices comes to a close.

The fraud case brought by James accuses the Republican frontrunner for president of inflating the value of properties, including his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida, to get better terms on loans.

James, who Trump has repeatedly attacked as partisan and 'racist,' had originally sued the former president for $250 million.

The new bombshell filing Friday argues that the massive sum is warranted due to the former president's 'myriad deceptive schemes' that were employed by his business and co-defendants to 'inflate asset values and conceal facts.'

She writes the alleged fraud schemes were 'so outrageous that they belie innocent explanation.'

Trump's attorneys fired back, saying that James has 'no evidence' and insisted there was not a single witness who backs up those scathing allegations.

Judge Arthur Engoron has already found Trump, and his sons Don Jr. and Eric, liable for fraud.

The post-trial briefs followed an 11-week explosive trial to determine how much money Trump and his business should fork over - which wound down last month. Closing arguments before Engoron are scheduled for next week and he could rule by the end of the month.

The former president took to his Truth Social account to blast the $370 million sum requested by James, who he called 'corrupt.'

'I did nothing wrong,' he wrote in all caps, calling his financial statements 'great' and 'very conservative.'

'NOW THE CORRUPT A.G. WANTS $370,000,000 AS BUSINESSES FLEE NEW YORK. THEY SHOULD PAY ME,' he exclaimed.

He went on to call it 'prosecutorial misconduct' and a 'DOJ witch hunt.'

Comment: Prima facie, both accurate statements.

© Donald Trump/Truth Social

Trump attorney Alina Habba added in a statement to DailyMail.com that the new penalty is 'absurd' and can be described as 'nothing less than a form of politically motivated persecution of the leading Republican presidential candidate.'

'My clients did nothing wrong, there were no victims and the case presented has proven that his statements were under valued,' she continued.

Comment: Banks operating at Trump's level aren't stupid. They make loans based on their own due diligence. The sums he received were based on the value they placed on his collateral properties, not a figure pulled out of the air.

Trump's legal team finally rested their defense in his New York fraud trial on December 13, after one final courtroom skirmish where Judge Arthur Engoron told them there was 'no way' he would rule in their favor.

The final squabble came after Trump failed to appear in his own defense as he originally forecast and son Eric made a surprise appearance to watch the final moments of the family business's case.

That came after the former president posted on X that 'I have already testified to everything & have nothing more to say.'

'We do rest,' Trump lawyer Chris Kise told the judge, who Trump attacked as 'crooked' throughout the trial while also firing off posts targeting his wife and chief judicial clerk.

© Getty

Trump lawyer Chris Kise indicated that Trump's team planned to appeal

Trump lawyer Chris Kise indicated took a series of steps on general court matters 'for appellate purposes,' prompting a quip from Engoron.

'You're going to appeal,' he said, ABC News reported.

Kise said he planned to make a motion for a 'directed verdict.' That would be an opportunity for the judge to rule there was no sufficient evidence to the prosecution's case, effectively ending a matter where he has already made a finding of fraud.

'There is no way I am going to grant that,' Engoron told him. 'You'd be wasting your time.'

Comment: No bias there.

The statement came at the end of a $250 million fraud trial to decide on the amount of financial penalty Trump and the Trump Organization will face - with his ability to do business in New York State also on the line.

Here's a breakdown of James' biggest accusations:

• Trump claimed his Trump Tower penthouse apartment was three times its actual size - and worth a whopping $327 million
• Trump valued Mar-a-Lago at nearly 10 times what it was worth at $739 million
• Trump valued his Park Avenue based on the units' market value, though they were rent stabilized and worth far less at a total of $84.5 million
• Trump valued his Seven Springs estate nearly ten times what it was appraised for only a few years prior at up to $291 million
• Trump listed the value of 40 Wall Street at over $300 million what it was found to be worth at $530 million
• Trump told Nevada tax authorities Trump International Hotel and Tower in Las Vegas was worth far less than what his financial statement showed at $108 million
• Trump did not factor in escalating rent expenses for his Niketown valuation in the mid-$400 million range
• Trump used 'deceptive techniques' to list the value of his golf and social clubs
• Trump valued his Turnberry golf course on a fixed asset scheme at $127 million even though it has been operating at a loss

Trump has railed against his prosecution throughout the proceedings, including during his final courtroom visit last month.

He has used the trial to score frequent televised appearances before the media from inside the courtroom, and has seen his poll numbers against Republican opponents and President Joe Biden rise during the duration of the trial.

There was some more action from the prosecution last month over the valuation of Trump's penthouse apartment. Prosecutors say his firm goosed the value of the Trump Tower unit by $200 million.

Under questioning, from Trump International Realty executive Kevin Sneddon about how he came up with the valuation of the unit. He said he got the information from former Trump Organization executive Allen Weisselberg, who phoned in the information to get a value years ago.

'I asked if I could see it. He said that was not possible. I asked if there was a floor plan or any specs. He said he did not have any of that information,' Sneddon testified. 'He said, 'It's quite large. I think it's around 30,000 square feet.''

Comment: From The Gateway Pundit , December 17, 2023:

© The Gateway Pundit

Judge Arthur Engoron and New York Attorney General Letitia James

Due process and fair trials are fundamental principles of any democratic society.

Every individual deserves to be considered innocent until proven guilty through a fair and impartial process. This prevents hasty judgments and protects individuals from unfounded accusations. In any accusation, the accused individual deserves the opportunity to present their side of the story and challenge evidence. This ensures that all relevant information is considered before a decision is made, but not in Trump's case.

In her latest video, New York Attorney General Letitia James admitted her guilt in compromising former President Donald Trump's right to due process. This comes after she claimed that Judge Arthur Engoron had found Trump guilty of "significant financial fraud" even before the current trial began.

Attorney General Letitia James is seeking $250 million in 'damages' when there is no victim in this fraud case and she is also seeking to ban Trump and his sons from operating any businesses in New York. She accused Trump of inflating his assets and defrauding lenders and insurance companies.

Last month, The Gateway Pundit reported that a Deutsche Bank executive who worked to approve at least one of Trump's loans testified that it is "atypical, but not entirely unusual" to reduce a client's asset values and still approve a loan.

This type of lending is typical in high net-worth, high-profile clients like Donald Trump. Anyone with basic knowledge of banking, lending, portfolio and credit risk management knows this.

"A Deutsche Bank AG executive gave testimony that could bolster Donald Trump's defense in his civil fraud trial, telling a New York judge that prospective clients can get loans even after reporting a net worth far higher than the lender's own calculations," Bloomberg reported.

Williams testified that Trump's stated assets are merely an opinion and a difference of opinion in asset values does not disqualify the potential borrower from a loan.

"It's just a difference of opinion," Williams said.

In an interview with FOX News, Trump's attorney, Halina Habba, said that the Deutsche Bank AG executive told the court that Letitia James' complaint has no merit.

"After hearing Deutsche Bank say that they still consider the Trump Organization a great client - that they paid their loans off early, and nobody was not paid - their statements of financial condition were actually undervalued. And hearing that from experts who are on the Nobel Committee Executive Committee, recommendations saying that the accounting records were perfect, and those mistakes that may or may not have been on were not mistakes at all; they were called subjective valuations, which every real estate developer has. They were absolutely fine, and there was absolutely no fault at all. And frankly, they even went further and said the New York attorney general's complaint had no merit; there was absolutely no violations of any accounting principles." - Halina Habba

In a statement released on Truth Social, the former president lambasted the New York State Attorney General's trial as "corrupt" and "Biden directed," claiming to have already provided conclusive testimony. Trump announced that he would not testify in his scheduled testimony in New York last week.

Trump stated that numerous "world-renowned experts" and "highly respected" professionals from the banking, insurance, and real estate sectors had confirmed the legality of his and his company's financial dealings.

Trump said in a fiery statement:

As everyone knows, I have very successfully & conclusively testified in the corrupt, Biden-directed, New York State Attorney General's rigged trial against me.

World renowned experts, highly respected bank & insurance executives, real estate professionals, as well as others, both honest & credible, have stated, clearly & unequivocally, that I, & my very successful company, did nothing wrong!

My financial statements were conservative, liquid, & "extraordinary."

A top professor from NYU Stern said, "If Mr. Trump were my student, he would get an 'A' on his financial statements. I've never seen a statement that provided so much detail, & is so transparent, as these statements."

Plus, they all have an ironclad disclaimer clause stating that the users must do their own due diligence & analysis - no reliance! The only fraud committed was by the highly partisan & out of control judge, & racist A.G. (who promised that, "I will get Trump").

They claimed that Mar-a-Lago was worth only $18,000,000, when it is worth 50 to 100 times that amount, in order to illegally reduce my values & make a fake case against me. They did this on other properties, as well, & wouldn't give me a jury. Likewise, the A.G. thugs do not want to acknowledge that I have paid almost 300 million dollars in New York City & State taxes during the years in question. Importantly, I won at the Appellate Division, which effectively ended most of the case, but the biased judge refused to accept their order, an unheard of first!

Based on the above, and the fact that our unassailable final expert witness has been so strong and irrefutable in his testimony, which will conclude on Tuesday, & that I have already testified to everything & have nothing more to say other than that this is a complete & total election interference (Biden campaign!) witch hunt, that will do nothing but keep businesses out of New York, I will not be testifying on Monday. MAGA!

In a video statement released on Friday, Letitia James admitted that Judge Engoron had already determined Trump engaged in "significant financial fraud" prior to the commencement of the current trial.

"Before this trial even began, the judge ruled in our favor and found that Donald Trump did engage in years of significant financial fraud," the "corrupt" Attorney General admitted. "We uncovered throughout this trial, we revealed the full extent of that fraud. We introduced extensive evidence and questioned more than two dozen witnesses."

WATCH:

This is true.

According to the New York Times,

"Justice Engoron ruled before the trial began that Mr. Trump had fraudulently inflated his net worth, and announced an initial round of punishments. That blow recast the trial as a battle over how steep a penalty the former president would face."

David Freiheit, a Canadian lawyer and former political candidate for the People's Party of Canada, also known as Viva Frei on social media, lambasted "corrupt" Letitia James and "nipple" Judge Engoron.

"'Before this trial even began, the judge ruled in our favor.' You know what that's called? That's called communism. That is called an absolute judicial injustice. She should be impeached. The judge should be impeached. The entire [case] should be thrown out. And my goodness, anybody sitting there saying that Trump is guilty needs to have their head examined because this has been the most egregious injustice," said Frei.

"Attorney General Leticia James is corrupt as the day is long, and Judge Engron, New York nipple Judge Engron is as corrupt as the day is long. And they've just said it out loud for everyone to hear," he added.

WATCH:

According to far-left Salon, citing the New York Times, legal experts have expressed concerns that Judge Arthur Engoron, presiding over former President Donald Trump's New York fraud trial, may have overstepped his authority. These experts suggest that Judge Engoron might have erred in his decision to order the dissolution of some of Trump's New York companies.

Judge Arthur Engoron ruled before the start of the trial that Trump fraudulently inflated his net worth and ordered some of his New York companies be dissolved. But legal experts told the outlet that Engoron "may have lacked the authority to dissolve the companies."

An appeals court last week stayed the judge's punishment while it reviews the order.

"President Trump very much appreciates the court's consideration and ruling," Trump attorney Christopher Kise said after the appellate court took up the case, adding that it would help "pave the way for a much needed, and deliberative, review of the trial court's many errors."

Last month, Republican Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (NY) filed a judicial ethics complaint against NY Judge Arthur Engoron over his 'bizarre behavior' in Trump's non-jury civil fraud case.

"Judge Engoron's bizarre and biased behavior is making New York's judicial system a laughingstock. Former Southern District of New York federal prosecutor Andrew McCarthy, who has at times criticized President Trump, recently stated that he views the "whole New York justice system" as "fraudulent."" Stefanik wrote.

"Americans are sick and tired of the blatant corruption by radical Leftist judges in NY. All New Yorkers must speak out against the dangerous weaponized lawfare against President Trump," she added.

In her complaint, the congresswoman wrote:

"I write today to express my serious concerns about the inappropriate bias and judicial intemperance shown by Judge Arthur F. Engoron in New York's lawsuit against President Donald J. Trump and the Trump Organization. This judge's bizarre behavior has no place in our judicial system, where Judge Engoron is not honoring the defendant's rights to due process and a fair trial.

These serious concerns are exacerbated by the fact that the defendant is the leading candidate for President of the United States, and it appears the judicial system is being politicized to affect the outcome of the campaign. Simply put, Judge Engoron has displayed a clear judicial bias against the defendant throughout the case, breaking several rules in the New York Code of Judicial Conduct."