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The New York Attorney General stated that the legal threat to Donald Trump and his business empire has escalated, and that long-term investigations of these entities have led to possible criminal acts, not just civil crimes.
The investigation was led by the state attorney general, Letitia James, as part of the investigation. Two-pronged legal pursuit The other business with him is handled by the office of Cyrus Vance, Manhattan District Attorney, It usually focuses more on criminal cases rather than civil cases.
A spokesperson for James said: “We have notified the Trump Organization that our investigation of the organization is no longer purely civil in nature. We are now actively investigating the Trump Organization in a criminal capacity with the Manhattan DA.”
In his lengthy statement, Trump described these investigations as “the largest political witch hunt in American history.”
The former president said: “Nothing is more corrupt than an investigation for the purpose of seeking a crime.” He claimed that the purpose of the investigation was to prevent him from bidding for the White House again.
The Trump Organization did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
People familiar with the matter said that the focus of the investigation was whether the company used to exaggerate the value of certain properties to guarantee bank loans while at the same time minimizing them to reduce taxes and commit fraud.
The investigation stemmed from reports in 2018 that one of the president’s personal lawyers, Michael Cohen, arranged “quietly” payments for women who claimed to have extramarital affairs with Trump.Cohen Sentenced Three years imprisonment After pleading guilty to multiple federal charges, he told Congress that he later received reimbursement from the Trump Organization and was recorded as attorney’s fees.
A person familiar with the content of the James investigation said that the focus on criminal matters does not rule out the possibility that it may still lead to civil charges.
Both offices have recently received help from the former daughter of Allen Weisselberg, longtime Trump Organization chief financial officer.
New York defense lawyer Michael Bachner said that when a civil case has been referred to a criminal investigation, the attorney general’s office usually informs the parties.
Bachner said that it is unclear whether James and Vance are pursuing the same criminal responsibility or prosecuting separately.
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