On Monday, presumptive GOP nominee and 45th President Donald Trump's legal team admitted that they have been unable to underwrite their client's $454 million fine imposed on him by Judge Arthur Engoron in the civil fraud case brought against him by New York Attorney General Letitia James (D-NY). If Trump is unable to post the bond, James has warned that she is prepared to seize some of Trump's assets.
"The amount of the judgment, with interest, exceeds $464 million, and very few bonding companies will consider a bond of anything approaching that magnitude," Trump's lawyers, who attempted unsuccessfully to post only a $100 million bond last month, wrote. The attorneys have approached 30 surety companies in an attempt to find a company that is willing to underwrite the bond. The 45th president's "ongoing diligent efforts have proven that a bond in the judgment's full amount is a 'practical impossibility,'" the lawyers explained in a court filing. "These diligent efforts have included approaching about 30 surety companies through 4 separate brokers." Trump has until next week to post the bond, and if he fails to do so, James will be able to begin collecting the fine by seizing Trump's assets.
As previously reported by the DC Enquirer, Judge Engoron ruled last month that Trump defrauded various banks to receive more beneficial loan terms. Engoron ordered Trump to pay a massive $354 million fine in addition to barring him "from serving as an officer or director of any New York corporation or other legal entity in New York for a period of three years." Trump is also responsible for paying around $100 million in pre-judgment interest.
Trump has vowed to appeal the ruling. However, he must first pay the fine in the form of a bond to the state. James, who ran her campaign around bringing charges against Trump in 2018, explained that if Trump is unable to come up with the funds, then she would seize his assets. "If he does not have funds to pay off the judgment, then we will seek judgment enforcement mechanisms in court, and we will ask the judge to seize his assets," James told ABC News.
The New York AG explained that she is confident that she would win her case on appeal and that she is actively looking at seizing 40 Wall Street, a skyscraper owned by Trump in Manhattan's financial district. "We are prepared to make sure that the judgment is paid to New Yorkers, and yes, I look at 40 Wall Street each and every day," she said.
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