Donald Trump's bail is not enough, according to the prosecutor.
Photograph: Sarah Yenisel/AP/TT
Now Letitia James is asking the judge to revoke her bail.
Photo: Peter Foley/EPA/TT/EPA
The article in brief
Donald Trump has put up a bail amount of SEK 1.9 billion as surety, but New York State Attorney General Letitia James considers it insufficient.
James criticizes bail for being “vague, incomplete and lacking convincing evidence” of sufficient funds.
The bond offered by Knight Specialty Insurance Company could be rejected, and James gave Trump a week to arrange a new bond.
Unless a new guarantor is provided, James could begin seizing Trump's assets and freezing his bank accounts.
The initial fine amount of more than five billion kroner stems from a civil trial in which Trump was found guilty of fraud by overvaluing assets.
Donald Trump's bail bonds are “vague, incomplete and lack convincing evidence” that there are actually enough funds to cover the debt if the former president eventually has to pay a massive fraud fine. New York State Attorney General Letitia James writes to the court Financial Times.
The fine imposed by Donald Trump – which he has appealed – now stands at more than five billion kroner, including interest, which continues to rise by one million kroner daily. Pending the final ruling, Trump posted the $1.9 billion bail in the form of a guarantee from a company called Knight Specialty Insurance Company. And this is the certainty that Letitia James is now turning against.
She called the arrangement “unusable” and has now given Trump a week to find a new security guard, or else she could begin seizing Trump's property and possibly freezing his bank accounts. Hearings on the attorney general's demands will be held on Monday, while Trump's impeachment trial over Stormy Daniels' money is set to begin in earnest with opening statements.
Trump controls the account
Knight Specialty Insurance Company claims there is an account with the full bail amount, but the prosecutor points out that she has only seen one screenshot of that account — an account that Donald Trump's organization, the Donald J. Trump Revocable Trust, also has controls over.
“They can withdraw money at any time,” says Letitia James, who also objects that Knight exclusively uses companies in the Cayman Islands where “lax rules” give the company the opportunity to inflate its numbers and make them appear safer than they really are. .
The fine comes from a civil trial where Donald Trump was found guilty of fraud, including overstating the value of his assets to get better terms on loans.
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