Donald Trump must pay $354 million for fraudulent business practices, Judge Arthur Engoron ruled in the former president’s civil fraud trial Friday.
Trump’s sons Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump have been fined $4 million apiece, and former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg has been fined $1 million.
The decision bars Trump from serving as an officer of a New York company for three years, and bars his sons for two years apiece.
Regarding the dissolution of Trump’s companies, the decision says, “This Court hereby modifies its September 26, 2023, Decision and Order solely to the extent of removing the language ordering the LLCs cancellation en masse. The restructuring and potential dissolution of any LLCs shall be subject to individual review by the court-appointed Independent Director of Compliance in consultation with Judge Jones.”
In his decision, Engoron wrote that “Defendants’ refusal to admit error — indeed, to continue it, according to the Independent Monitor — constrains this Court to conclude that they will engage in it going forward unless judicially restrained.”
Engoron’s decision follows an 11-week civil trial in New York, where Trump and three of his adult children testified.
New York Attorney General Letitia James sued Trump, his two adult sons, and Trump Organization executives in September 2022 for issuing fraudulent financial statements — including over 200 false and misleading asset values between 2011 and 2021 — to get better loan terms and business deals.
The former president has denied all wrongdoing and his attorneys have argued that Trump’s alleged inflated valuations were a product of his business skill.
Source-ABC
