New York Attorney General Letitia James is seeking more than $370 million from Donald Trump and wants to ban him from doing business in the state as the explosive civil fraud lawsuit against his family's business practices comes to an end.
The fraud case brought by James accuses Trump of inflating the value of properties, including his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida, to get better loan terms.
James, whom Trump has repeatedly attacked as partisan and “racist,” originally sued the former president for $250 million.
Friday's new bombshell report argues that the massive sum is justified because of the former president's “countless fraudulent schemes” used by his company and his co-defendants to “inflate asset values and obscure facts.”
She writes that the alleged fraud schemes are “so egregious that they belie an innocent explanation.”
Trump's lawyers fired back, saying that James had “no evidence” and stressed that there was not a single witness to back up these damning allegations.
Judge Arthur Engoron has already found Trump and his sons Don Jr. and Eric liable for fraud.
The debriefings followed an explosive 11-week trial over how much money Trump and his company should spend – which ended last month.
Donald Trump in Manhattan Civil Court
“He rambled, he hurled insults,” New York AG Letitia James said after a dramatic appearance by former President Donald Trump
Final hearings before Engoron are scheduled for next week and he could decide by the end of the month.
Trump's legal team finally gave their defense a break in his New York fraud trial on Dec. 13, after a final courtroom stand in which Judge Arthur Engoron told them there was “no way” he would rule in their favor.
The latest dispute came after Trump failed to appear in his own defense as originally predicted and son Eric made a surprise appearance to watch the final moments of the family business's fall.
This came after the former president posted on X: “I've already said everything and have nothing more to say.”
“We are resting,” Trump lawyer Chris Kise told the judge, whom Trump had attacked as “crooked” throughout the trial while firing off posts against his wife and his chief clerk.
Trump's lawyer Chris Kise indicated that he had taken a number of steps in general court matters “for appellate purposes,” prompting a quip from Engoron.
“They will appeal,” he said, ABC News reported.
Kise said he plans to file a motion for a “targeted judgment.” This would be an opportunity for the judge to decide that there is insufficient evidence to support the prosecution's case, thereby ending a matter in which he has already found fraud.
“There’s no way I’m going to admit that,” Engoron told him. “You’d be wasting your time.”
The statement came at the end of a $250 million fraud trial that was deciding the size of the fine Trump and the Trump Organization will face – which also placed his ability to do business in New York state on the line Game stands.
Trump railed against his prosecution throughout the trial, including during his final court appearance last month.
He used the trial to make frequent television appearances in front of the media from the courtroom and saw his poll numbers rise over Republican opponents and President Joe Biden over the duration of the trial.
Judge Arthur Engoron told Trump's lawyer Chris Kise that he would “absolutely not” grant his request for a “direct judgment” in the case
Kise indicated that Trump's team planned to appeal
On Tuesday, prosecutors asked more questions about Trump's penthouse apartment, which they said was increased in value by about $200 million through the use of inaccurate square footage
Last month there was further action by prosecutors over the assessment of Trump's penthouse apartment. Prosecutors say his company inflated the value of the Trump Tower unit by $200 million.
Kevin Sneddon, managing director of Trump International Realty, is asked how he arrived at the valuation of the unit. He said he got the information from former Trump Organization executive Allen Weisselberg, who called the information years ago to get a value.
“I asked if I could see it. He said that wasn't possible. I asked if there was a floor plan or specifications. “He said he didn’t have any of that information,” Sneddon testified. “He said, 'It's pretty big.' “I think it’s about 30,000 square feet.”