MIRROR
A judge has ruled that former president Donald Trump has committed fraud by massively overvaluing his assets and exaggerating his net worth in financial documents in a civil case accusing Trump of inflating his net worth from anywhere between $1.9 billion to $3.6 billion per year from 2011 to 2021.
Judge Arthur Engoron issued the ruling today in a civil lawsuit filed against Trump by New York’s attorney general. The judge ruled that Trump had committed fraud for years while building his real estate empire which served as a launchpad for not only his fame but also his time in the White House as President.
Judge Engoron found that Trump and his company had deceived banks, insurers and others by hugely overvaluing his assets and exaggerating his net worth on paperwork used in making deals and securing financing.
The decision comes just days before the start of a non-jury trial in Attorney General Letitia James’ lawsuit. It marks a blow for the former president’s carefully put-together image as a wealthy and shrewd real estate mogul turned political powerhouse.
“In defendants’ world: rent regulated apartments are worth the same as unregulated apartments’ restricted land is worth the same as unrestricted land’ restrictions can evaporate into thin air; a disclaimer by one party casting responsibility on another party exonerates the other party’s lies,” Judge Engoron wrote in his 35-page ruling. “This is a fantasy world, not the real world.”
