Donald Trump on Wednesday invoked the Fifth Amendment and refused to answer questions during an interrogation as part of a civil investigation, led by attorney Letitia James, into suspicions of financial fraud in the Trump Organization’s businesses, particularly in the real estate sector. .
In a statement issued shortly after the interrogation began, the former US president stated that he had done “nothing wrong” and that “after five years of searching, the federal, state and municipal governments (…) found nothing.”
I once asked: ‘If you are innocent, why do you accept the Fifth Amendment??’ Now I know the answer to that question. When your family, your business and everyone around you becomes the target of a baseless and politically motivated witch hunt, supported by lawyers, prosecutors (…) you have no other choice”, reads the note.
Donald Trump further explained that “the invasion” of his Mar-a-Lago resort “has removed any uncertainty” and “doubt” he might have had. “On the advice of my attorney and for all of the above reasons, I have refused to answer questions about the rights and privileges afforded to all citizens under the United States Constitution,” he stated.
At stake is, according to The New York Times, an investigation into the properties that Trump owns and the suspicion that, on the one hand, he will have inflated the value of real estate to obtain loans and, on the other, he will have devalued them. them to apply for tax exemptions. Donald Trump has always denied having committed these crimes and accuses prosecutors of political persecution.
The lawsuit is divided into two parts: an investigation led by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, seeking to determine whether the Trump family’s real estate company misrepresented its property values, and a civil investigation, led by the New York prosecutor. York, Leticia James, which is intended to test whether there has been inflation in property values.
The FBI searched Donald Trump’s Palm Beach resort. The former US president says they want to prevent him from running for election in 2024
Wednesday’s interrogation came a day after former US President Donald Trump confirmed that the Federal Police (FBI) had been searching his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida.
To describe the moment, the former White House leader said his property was, at the time, “surrounded, attacked and occupied by a large number of FBI agents.” He also added that “the attack was not announced” and accused the agents of “until they broke into” his safe..
In an extensive statement, revealed by a CNN journalist on Twitter, Trump claims to be “the victim of unprecedented persecution”, this being “a dark moment for the nation”. “Such an assault could only take place in party and third world countries. Unfortunately, the United States has become one of them, with a level of corruption never seen before.”
An “unprecedented search” for an “unprecedented president”. Under investigation, Trump speeds up presidential bid
Updated news at 4:20 p.m. with the statement issued by Donald Trump
Source: Observadora
