Court imposes record fine on former US President Trump in 'real estate fraud' case
Former US President Donald Trump has been fined 354.9 million dollars in a lawsuit filed against him, his children, and his companies for "defrauding numerous individuals and institutions in the real estate sector for years."
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Judge Arthur Engoron announced his verdict in the case that has occupied the public agenda for a long time.
Engoron fined Trump 354.9 million dollars for "engaging in fraudulent business practices in the real estate sector," 4 million dollars each to his children Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, and 1 million dollars to the company's former chief financial officer.
In addition to the total fine of 364 million dollars in the case, Trump was banned from serving as a senior executive in his companies in New York for 3 years, and his children were banned for two years, along with a prohibition on obtaining loans from banks.
Trump had attended the hearings, which have been ongoing in New York since October 2, 2023, multiple times despite not being required to do so, and had denied the accusations against him, arguing that the case was filed with "political motives."
THE FRAUD CASE PROCESS
New York Attorney General Letitia James, in the indictment where she alleged that Trump, his three children, and his company inflated their wealth by 3.6 billion dollars, had requested that the judge ban Trump and his children from establishing companies in New York, purchasing commercial real estate for 5 years, and that they be fined 370 million dollars.
Judge Arthur Engoron had ruled that the allegations that former President Trump and his company, the "Trump Organization," defrauded banks, insurers, and business figures by overvaluing assets and exaggerating net worth in agreements and financing documents would be evaluated in court in the lawsuit filed on charges of "defrauding numerous individuals and institutions in the real estate sector for years."
In his 35-page decision, Engoron stated that Trump, his company, and his executives had obtained loans under favorable terms and lower insurance premiums by consistently lying about their annual financial status.
The hearings, which began on October 2, 2023, concluded with closing arguments on January 11.