President Trump’s estate in Seven Springs in Mount Kisco, New York, here on September 30, 2020.
Johnny Milano | The Washington Post | Getty Images
The Manhattan Attorney’s Office has expanded its criminal investigation into President Donald Trump’s company to include a sprawling property in Westchester County, New York.
A Bedford, New York City attorney told CNBC that sometime “before Christmas” the city’s office issued a subpoena for records of the Trump Organization’s Seven Springs Estate as part of a criminal investigation.
Bedford’s attorney Joel Sachs said he believed the towns of New Castle and North Castle, in addition to Bedford, also had records cited from Vance’s office on the criminal investigation, as the 213-acre property spans all three towns.
The company’s multi-month evaluation of Seven Springs was the focus of a civil fraud investigation by the New York Attorney General.
AG Letitia James has stated that it is investigating whether Trump’s company has fraudulently increased the value of Seven Springs on financial statements that have been used to obtain credit and obtain economic and tax advantages. Trump bought the property in 1996 for only $ 7.5 million. In 2012, he valued the property at a whopping $ 291 million.
Vance’s office was previously known to be investigating hush money payments to women who claimed to have sex with Trump, as well as possible tax, banking, and insurance fraud. Trump has denied having sex with the women, porn star Stormy Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal.
Trump has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to block a subpoena for his accountants’ longstanding tax and financial filings issued by a Manhattan grand jury acting at Vance’s request. The Supreme Court has yet to decide whether it will hear Trump’s appeal against court rulings that Mazars USA must submit these documents.
On Friday, The Associated Press reported that investigators in Vance’s office interviewed Trump’s former private attorney Michael Cohen for hours on Thursday, asking him about the president’s business dealings, focusing on his relationship with Deutsche Bank, Trump’s largest lender.
Cohen testified before Congress in 2019 that the president’s financial statements increased to the values of his assets to get favorable terms on loans and insurance, while the value of other assets was decreased to lower property taxes due on them .
New Castle Town supervisor Ivy Pool declined to comment when contacted by CNBC. North Castle officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Vance spokesman Danny Frost declined to comment.
A Trump Organization spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Wall Street Journal first reported the expansion of Vance’s investigation to Seven Springs.
AG James’s office in a lawsuit related to their investigation found that “Valuations of Seven Springs was used to obtain an apparent tax deduction of $ 21.1 million for a property conservation donation for the 2015 tax year and for Filings with financial institutions to be claimed as part of Mr. Trump’s fortune. “
James’ research also examines the valuation of other Trump properties on 40 Wall Street in Manhattan, the Trump International Hotel and Tower Chicago, and the Trump National Golf Club in Los Angeles.
Eric Trump, the son of the President and Executive Vice President of the Trump Organization, was forced to answer questions from James’ investigators for their investigation last fall after failing to convince a judge to postpone his testimony until the presidential election his father had lost to Joe Biden.
Eric Trump ran the Trump organization with his brother Donald Trump Jr. while their father was president.
Donald Trump was indicted for the second time by the House of Representatives on Wednesday.
He is accused in this trial of inciting a crowd of supporters to get upset in the US Capitol, which disrupted the confirmation by a joint session of Congress of Biden’s election. Five people, including a Capitol policeman who was killed by the crowd, died as a result of the incident.
Biden is due to take office on Wednesday.
