As the upcoming work week kicks off on Monday, New York state Attorney General Letitia James could herself start an attempt to seize some of Donald Trump’s assets to cover his hundreds of millions of dollars in penalties imposed following an earlier fraud case from the state’s top prosecutor.
“If Donald Trump doesn’t come up with the $464 million bond by tomorrow, New York Attorney General Letitia James is prepared to begin seizing some of his most prized assets,” ABC News’ Aaron Katersky explained Sunday on the air.
He then recounted some of Trump and his team’s responses to the demands for a bond to stave off collections during an appeals process, including the ex-president’s own recent claim that he does actually have extensive cash holdings but intended the money for his campaign. “But Trump hasn’t offered any proof he actually has $500 million in cash, and he hasn’t put any of his own money into his campaign since 2016,” the journalist added.
James “could start to identify accounts to freeze or move to file liens on certain properties, or she may ultimately opt to wait a bit [to] allow the appeals court to decide whether Trump deserves any kind of a reprieve,” Katersky summarized for ABC viewers.
Other sources also said that bank accounts tied to Trump could be subject to a seizure push.
“James likely wouldn’t start by targeting his real estate holdings, said legal experts. She is more likely to begin by seizing his bank accounts, which would give her direct access to cash,” POLITICO reported as the deadline approached.
It remained unclear Sunday how the near future would unfold in Trump’s case. He had been insistent as the deadline approached on the supposed injustice of needing to produce a bond alongside the appeals process at all, seemingly claiming the demand to be something new in procedural terms. It wasn’t. Trump, meanwhile, was also facing a New York court hearing on Monday in his local criminal case, amid which prosecutors are seeking to have Trump put on trial next month.
