The New York attorney general’s office is intensifying its pursuit of financial penalties against former President Donald Trump, seeking a substantial $370 million. This move follows a September 2022 lawsuit initiated by Attorney General Letitia James, which initially sought $250 million in damages but has now increased due to the emergence of additional evidence related to alleged deceptive practices.
The allegations revolve around a reported decade-long pattern of deceptive practices where Trump is accused of misleading banks and others about his net worth. If approved by the trial judge, New York Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron, Trump would not only be compelled to pay the $370 million but also face accrued interest over a decade.
Trump’s defense team has vigorously contested the increased sum, asserting that state law does not authorize the attorney general to pursue such substantial financial penalties. Despite their arguments being previously unsuccessful in court, the defense aims to challenge the legitimacy of seeking damages beyond the original lawsuit.
More Read
The recent filing by the attorney general’s office on Friday alleges that Trump and other defendants obtained “hundreds of millions of dollars in ill-gotten gains through their unlawful conduct.” The $370 million request is said to cover three distinct categories of these gains.
The first category involves interest-rate savings, where Trump purportedly inflated his net worth, resulting in estimated savings of $168 million. This revelation emerged from testimony by one of the state’s expert witnesses during the trial.
The second category pertains to profits Trump allegedly gained from the sale of two significant assets: the lease to the Old Post Office luxury hotel property in Washington, D.C., generating a reported profit of $139 million, and the lease to the Ferry Point golf course in the Bronx, which yielded an additional $60 million.
The third category focuses on $2.5 million in severance payments made by Trump to two co-defendants—former CFO Allen Weisselberg and former comptroller Jeffrey McConney. The attorney general contends that these payments were compensation for their involvement in the “fraudulent schemes” orchestrated by the defendants.
As the legal battle unfolds, this latest development highlights the gravity of the allegations against Trump and the potential financial consequences he may face. The breakdown of the $370 million request illuminates the diverse sources of the alleged ill-gotten gains, including interest-rate manipulations and profits from asset sales.
