Aug. 30 (UPI) — Former President Donald Trump has been accused of inflating his net worth by over $2 billion, as per a court filing made by the New York attorney general’s office.
The filing is part of a $250 million civil lawsuit against the former president, three of his children, and the Trump Organization.
According to the filing, the attorney general’s office alleges that Trump valued his Florida Mar-a-Lago estate “as if it could be sold as a private single family residence for amounts ranging between $347 million and $739 million,” while Palm Beach County assessed the property’s restricted use to be between $18 million and $27.6 million.
The motion also accuses Trump of adding an additional 15% to 30% “brand premium” to the value of his golf clubs and condominiums in New York City.
When the attorney general’s office adjusted Trump’s financial statements from a 10-year period, “it reduced Mr. Trump’s net worth by between 17-39% in each year, or between $812 million to $2.2 billion depending on the year.”
“Based on the undisputed evidence, no trial is required for the court to determine that defendants presented grossly and materially inflated asset values in the statements of financial condition and then used those SFCs repeatedly in business transactions to defraud bankers and insurers,” wrote the attorney general’s office in the motion.
An SFC is a “statement of financial condition.”
“Despite having 13 experts, the documents leave no doubt that Mr. Trump’s SFCs do not accurately reflect the ‘estimated current value’ of his assets as they would trade between well-informed market participants,” added the attorney general’s office.
New York Attorney General Letitia James filed the civil lawsuit last year, alleging that Trump, his children Eric, Donald Trump Jr., and Ivanka, along with the company, engaged in illegal schemes to accumulate $250 million by fraudulently inflating assets.
The lawsuit claims that the Trump Organization deceived lenders, insurers, and tax authorities regarding the business, properties, and golf courses.
Trump’s legal team has not responded but may contest the motion for summary judgment.
The trial is set to commence in October.
