The New York attorney general’s office announced yesterday that it is starting a criminal investigation into former President Donald Trump’s businesses, expanding what had previously solely been a civil probe, which is likely to make everyone in Trump World nervous.
The key change is that in addition to penalties, prison sentences can now be imposed.
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The Massive Probe that could Land Trump in Jail
Attorney General Letitia James’s spokesman Fabien Levy stated in a statement, “We have alerted the Trump Organization that our investigation into the corporation is no longer entirely civil in character.”
With the help of the Manhattan District Attorney, “we are now actively investigating the Trump Organization in a criminal capacity,” Levy added.
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The Trump Organization and its president, Donald Trump, have been the subject of a criminal investigation by the Manhattan district attorney’s office for the past two years, and James’ team has been assisting them in this effort.
Legal experts agree that the attorney general would need strong evidence of criminal activity to take such a step. It should give pause to Republicans who continue to align themselves with Trump at the federal, state, and local levels.
There’s a chance that by the time the elections in 2022 roll around, the criminal investigation will be at its height or have even concluded with the pressing of significant charges.
It could help the few Republicans who are standing up to the Big Lie in the immediate future, but it could spell doom for the GOP in the upcoming 2022 Midterm Elections.
This also Explains why Trump is Considering Relocating to New Jersey,
Further out of New York State’s reach, and why he is currently holed up in Mar-a-Lago, where he is likely to feel safe from any potential attempts to arrest him from New York. There would be no place to hide, though, if allegations were brought that were serious enough. If the offences are significant enough, extradition can be requested from any state or even another country.
However, the Attorney General’s office has not stated the particular grounds for the shift from a civil to criminal investigation.
The former Republican president has previously said the probes were a “witch hunt” on the part of the opposition party.
Both James’s civil investigation and Vance’s criminal investigation had looked at whether Trump or his businesses had inflated or minimised the worth of assets to take advantage of favourable loan terms or tax benefits, respectively.
Vance also looked into whether or not the millions of dollars in consulting fees paid by the Trump Organization, some of which went to Trump’s daughter Ivanka, were legitimate tax write-offs.
In November 2019, as part of her civil inquiry, James’s office sent subpoenas to local governments for papers relating to Trump’s estate north of Manhattan, Seven Springs, and a tax benefit Trump obtained for placing land there into a conservation trust.
James was also considering related matters at a Trump office building in New York City, a hotel in Chicago, and a golf course in the Los Angeles area. In addition, her agency was successful in having the courts order Trump’s corporation and the law firm it had hired to give over mountains of documents.
Vance’s probe also appears to have centred on Trump Organization longstanding finance executive Allen Weisselberg in recent weeks.
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Conclusion
Jen Weisselberg, Trump’s ex-daughter-in-law, has provided investigators with reams of paperwork related to the investigation into whether or not certain Trump employees were given residences or paid for their education. Thanks for read our Article The Massive Probe that could Land Trump in Jail.