Former President Donald Trump and his son Eric have responded harshly to a ruling from Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron.
Engoron, a Democrat, ruled on a recommendation from Democrat New York Attorney General Letitia James, whose campaign in 2022 included a vow to prosecute Trump if elected.
Engoron ruled the former president committed fraud by inflating the value of his wealth to secure loans and entice investors. Notably, neither James nor Engoron produced the names of any parties who were defrauded by Trump or his businesses.
According to the New York Post, Engoron, in his 35-page judgment, stated that Trump made “unequivocally false statements to secure favorable terms with financial institutions.”
Engoron’s ruling included revoking the New York “business certificates” held by the Trump Organization and his other New York-based business. Trump has also been mandated an independent third party to oversee the “dissolution of the canceled LLCs.”
The move effectively prohibits Trump from conducting business in New York.
Trump blasted the ruling in an exclusive interview with the Daily Caller, in which he claimed that the judge vastly undervalued his Mar-a-Lago property — evaluated at approximately $20 million — to justify his ruling that Trump undervalued his personal wealth.
Trump argued that his Mar-a-Lago property is worth $1.8 billion.
Engoron ruled that the disclaimer clause on the property limited its use and thus capped the value of the estate. Trump argued the clause is nonbinding and that his assertion is supported by Florida real estate experts.
Trump told the Caller: “The banks are happy. The banks got paid fully. They had the best lawyers in the country. They got all their money. They got all their interest. The banks have stated that they are thrilled. They got paid. They don’t even know why they are being involved in this thing.”
Trump added: “I built a great company and I have a disclaimer clause in the agreement. He says that Mar-a-Lago is worth 18 million dollars when it is worth probably 100 times that, 1.8 billion dollars and there are others in there too.”
On his Truth Social platform, Trump charged the court with judicial misconduct.
Eric Trump wrote that judicial officials in New York were trying to “destroy [his] father.”
Conservative influencer Terrence Williams posted that Trump was “under attack,” had been charged with “fake crimes,” and he called for Letitia James to be impeached.
Newsmax reported that Trump said of the ruling:
“I have been unfairly sued by the Trump Hating Democrat Attorney General of New York State, Letitia James, over the false fact that I inflated my Financial Statements.”
Trump added: “The Judge in the case, Arthur F. Engoron, refused to allow this case to go to the ‘Commercial Division,’ where it belongs, because he is a Trump Hater beyond even A.G. James, who campaigned against me spewing horrible inflammatory statements which are False & Defamatory.”
Trump’s lead attorney Alina Habba wrote: “Today’s decision is fundamentally flawed at every level. It is important to remember that the Trump Organization is an American success story. The fact that this Court summarily found that there is no question of fact, finding in part that Mar-a-Lago is worth approximately $20 million and issue a decision of this magnitude is an affront to our legal system.”
Habba added: “We intend to immediately appeal this decision because President Trump and his family, like every American business owner, is entitled to their day in court.”
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