Heard in New York on his tax practices, Donald Trump remains silent
Donald Trump before his hearing before the New York Attorney General, August 10, 2022. AP - Julia Nikhinson
Text by: RFI Follow
4 mins
The former President of the United States was heard this Wednesday, August 10 by the Attorney General of New York as part of a civil investigation for suspicion of financial fraud within his Trump Organization group.
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Heard under oath by the Attorney General of New York Letitia James, Donald Trump refused to answer his questions on suspicions of financial fraud which target him with his children, Ivanka and Donald Jr. The former American president invoked the famous 5th amendment of the American Constitution, which authorizes not to testify against oneself.
In a statement, Donald Trump said he was once again the victim of a "
witch hunt
" and claimed to have "
refused to answer questions, under the rights and prerogatives granted to every citizen by the Constitution of the United States
".
Barely arrived in the services of Letitia James, an elected African-American magistrate of the Democratic Party, the Republican billionaire made fun on his social network Truth Social of his “
sumptuous, magnificent and expensive office (…) beautiful conditions work while people are being killed in New York and she devotes her time and effort to trying to catch Trump
".
Trump denounces a “
banana republic
” governed by Joe Biden
Arriving Tuesday evening in the economic and cultural capital of the United States, the businessman announced that he was going to "
see the racist Attorney General of New York
".
He considers himself, with his Trump Organization group, "
attacked from all sides
" in a country ruled by his opponent Joe Biden.
A “
Banana Republic
” according to him.
One of the Trump sons, Eric, also denounced on Twitter the fact that his father was forced into "
a testimony in front of the most corrupt of the attorneys general of the United States
".
The "
evil
" incarnate according to Eric Trump.
This Donald Trump hearing had been requested by Letitia James for months and had been set for July 15.
But the death of Donald Trump's first wife, Ivana, had further postponed the event.
The Trumps finally bowed to pressure after a three-year prosecutorial investigation.
According to the American television channel
CNN, Ivanka and Donald Jr had discreetly been heard by the services of the Attorney General at the end of July and the beginning of August.
The civil investigation against the family group Trump Organization had been opened after the explosive testimony in Congress in Washington by one of Donald Trump's former personal lawyers, Michael Cohen, alleging fraudulent assessments, up or down , assets within the Trump Organization, to obtain loans, obtain tax reductions or better insurance compensation.
Letitia James assured in January that she had “
uncovered significant evidence suggesting that Donald Trump and the Trump Organization had falsely and fraudulently valued a number of assets
”, in particular golf courses or the personal triplex of the American billionaire, located in the Trump Tower in New York.
Allegations swept away by Donald Trump's lawyers.
The Attorney General does not have the power to indict Donald Trump, but she can initiate civil proceedings, including seeking financial damages.
The alleged facts are also the subject of a criminal investigation led by Manhattan prosecutor Alvin Bragg.
Two days after the search of Mar-a-Lago
The hearing comes two days after an
unprecedented search
of Donald Trump's home in Mar-a-Lago, Florida, sparked outrage among Republicans.
He even suggested on Truth Social that the FBI may have "
planted
" evidence against him during the operation.
Never had a former tenant of the White House been worried by justice in this way.
Does the federal police search have to do with the many boxes that Donald Trump took with him when he left the White House in January 2021?
Is it linked to the investigation into his responsibility in
the assault on the Capitol?
Does it rather concern the suspicions of financial fraud of which the Trump Organization is the subject in New York?
Neither the Department of Justice nor the FBI nor the New York City Department commented this week.
Donald Trump, who ostensibly flirts with a
new candidacy in 2024
, claims his innocence in all these cases.
►
Also to listen: "The most annoying thing for Donald Trump would be to have kept documents on January 6th"
(
With
AFP)
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