US judge orders Trump and his children to testify under oath

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The court is about their financial conduct: Ivanka Trump, her father Donald and her brother Donald Junior

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TIMOTHY A. CLARY / AFP

Former US President Donald Trump has been ordered by a New York judge to testify under oath as part of a financial investigation into his real estate empire.

Judge Arthur Engoron ruled on Thursday that Trump, his daughter Ivanka and his son Donald Junior have 21 days to comply with subpoenas from New York Attorney General Letitia James.

James spoke of a victory for the judiciary: "No one is above the law."

The Attorney General of New York State opened a civil investigation into the Trump Organization in 2019 for possible financial crimes.

She investigates the suspicion that the family holding company artificially inflated the value of real estate when it wanted to obtain loans from banks, and in other cases underestimated it in order to save on taxes or insurance premiums.

In January, James said he had collected evidence of fraudulent financial practices.

"In our investigation, we uncovered significant evidence suggesting that Donald J. Trump and the Trump Organization mispriced numerous assets and fraudulently." The assets were misrepresented to financial institutions to gain "economic benefits."

James wants to question the ex-president, his eldest son Donald Junior and his daughter Ivanka as part of their investigation and has issued subpoenas.

The Trumps sued against the subpoenas – and were now defeated in court.

You can, however, appeal the decision.

Judge Engoron said on Thursday that Trump and his children could exercise their right to remain silent during the interviews at any time.

Trump's second eldest son Eric, who was interviewed in October 2020, used it "more than 500 times" at the time.

Auditors end cooperation with client Trump

Trump has repeatedly denied the Attorney General's allegations and accused her of conducting politically motivated investigations against him.

James is a member of President Joe Biden's Democratic Party.

In parallel with the Attorney General's investigation, the Manhattan Attorney's Office is conducting a criminal investigation into Trump Corporation's business conduct.

In July last year, charges were brought against the Trump Organization and its longtime chief financial officer, Allen Weisselberg, for tax fraud.

It was only announced on Monday that Trump's long-standing auditors had parted ways with the former US President as a customer.

The accounting firm Mazars said the Trump Organization's financial statements for nearly a decade "should no longer be relied upon."

Both internal investigations and "external sources" had led to this conclusion.

Trump has been accused of dubious business and financial practices for decades.

It is still unclear how dangerous the investigations in New York Trump could be.

The 75-year-old has repeatedly raised a possible re-election for the presidency in 2024.

The right-wing populist still enjoys great respect among his supporters.

He is still the strongman in his Republican Party, even though some party leaders such as Mike Pence and Mitch McConnell have recently distanced themselves from Trump.

ok/AFP