The business empire of former US President Donald Trump has repeatedly used fraudulent business practices, according to the New York Attorney General. According to Letitia James, the aim was to obtain “a multitude of economic benefits”.

This involved obtaining loans, insurance and tax credits. The American newspaper The New York Times reports the first time that the attorney general has made such concrete allegations against Trump’s company.

According to the prosecution, the company has made misleading statements to lenders, insurers and the IRS about the value of six Trump properties, including golf clubs and well-known buildings such as Trump Tower in New York. Also, the ‘Trump brand’ would have been lied to. In that way, The Trump Organization may have been trying to paint a much more favourable picture of Trump’s wealth, James said.

She filed a motion to impeach former president Ivanka Trump and Donald Trump Jr. to hand over documents and answer questions about valuations of important Trump Organization properties. According to the US financial news agency Bloomberg, the investigation has since become one of the biggest legal threats to Trump, who is considering a new candidacy for president in 2024.

“So far in our investigation, we have uncovered significant evidence indicating that the Trump Organization has used fraudulent or misleading asset valuations to obtain a range of economic benefits, including loans, insurance and tax credits,” said James’s motion.

Letitia James has been investigating Trump’s business interests for two years. The attorney general, a Democrat and outspoken opponent of Trump responded with her motion to an earlier move by the Trump team to stop the investigation because it was politically motivated. However, a judge has already dismissed that argument at least twice before in the case.

According to the attorney general, the Trump Organization has been trying to slow down the investigation with all kinds of delays for more than two years. Finally, in December, Trump took legal action against James.