(Dan Tri) – Former US President Donald Trump appeared in court in New York, where he was accused of earning more than $1 billion from business fraud.
Former President Trump appeared in court in New York on October 2 (Photo: Reuters).
Reuters reported that New York state prosecutors on October 2 accused Mr. Trump of making more than $1 billion by providing false information about the value of his assets to banks and companies.
In a downtown Manhattan courtroom, Kevin Wallace, a lawyer in the office of New York State Attorney General Letitia James, accused Mr. Trump of `describing his financial situation to banks and insurance companies.`
Lawyer Wallace said Mr. Trump is suspected of doing this to get better loan terms and lower insurance premiums, illegally generating more than $1 billion in financial benefits.
Meanwhile, Christopher Kise, Mr. Trump’s lawyer, countered that the financial affairs of him and the Trump group are completely legal.
`This is one of the most successful brands in the world and he has literally made a fortune investing in real estate,` said lawyer Kise.
Mr. Trump, the Republican candidate for the 2024 presidential election, was accused by Ms. James of inflating his own net worth from 2011 to 2021.
Ms. James is asking for a fine of at least $250 million, a permanent ban on Mr. Trump and his sons Donald Jr. and Eric from operating businesses in New York, and a five-year commercial real estate ban.
Before entering the courtroom, Mr. Trump, who appeared in court in person, called the case against him `a continuation of the greatest witch hunt of all time.`
He accused Ms. James of being racist and said Democrats had a vendetta against him.
`The law is both strong and fragile,` Ms. James said before entering the courtroom.
Mr. Trump’s trial is overseen by Judge Arthur Engoron, who will listen to evidence without a jury.
On September 26, Mr. Engoron issued a judgment concluding that Mr. Trump deceived banks and insurance companies by inflating the value of assets in financial reports.
This civil trial aims to determine the penalty for Mr. Trump and the Trump corporation.
Mr. Engoron’s ruling last month involved some of his most valuable assets: Trump Tower, the Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, his family’s estate in Westchester County, New York, and
If these assets are affected after the court’s ruling, it will be a strong blow to Mr. Trump’s financial situation, according to Reuters.
The trial is expected to run until early December. More than 150 people are expected to testify and the trial is expected to be a confrontation between experts over financial documents.
