Donald Trump.Photo: James Devaney/GC Images
Former PresidentDonald Trumpdeclined to answer questions while under oath at the New York state attorney general’s office on Wednesday, instead invoking his Fifth Amendment right, he said.
Trump later indicated he pleaded the Fifth Amendment during his testimony,the Associated Press reports, and refused to answer questions under oath. (As he indicated in his statement, he has previously criticized those who plead the Fifth.)
Trump’s adult children —Ivanka TrumpandDonald Trump Jr.—sat for depositionsearlier this month as part of the ongoing probe into the Trump Organization’s finances.
The testimony comes as part of James' civil investigation into whether the Trump Organization misstated the value of its assets on annual financial statements, tax submissions and other documents in order to secure loans and insurance coverage and obtain other economic and tax benefits.
“Each of the individuals was directly involved in one or more transactions under review,” the attorney general’s office said.
The Trumps fought earlier attempts to get them to testify in the case,previously asking a judge to quashwhat they called an “unprecedented and unconstitutional” bid for their testimony after being subpoenaed in December.
The court ultimately directed Donald, Donald Jr. and Ivanka to appear for testimony — a decision it reaffirmed after appeal.
President Trump’s middle son,Eric Trump, who serves as an executive vice president at Trump Organization, was subpoenaed earlier on and testified in 2020. According to reports, however, both he and former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg asserted their Fifth Amendment right when questioned.
The Trumps have argued that James' investigation is politically motivated, which James has repeatedly denied.
The family is currently facing both a civil and a criminal investigation into the accuracy of Trump Organization financial statements. The criminal investigation has slowed after senior prosecutorsresignedwhen a district attorney reportedly expressed doubts about the case, theNew York Timesreports, but the case remainsongoing.
The onetimeApprenticestar added: “They even broke into my safe!”
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The probe reportedly hinges on whether he took classified documents from the White House and to his private residence at Mar-a-Lago after he left office,Politico,CNN,The Washington Postand other news outlets reported.
Doing sowould violate the Presidential Records Act, which requires commanders in chief to preserve all documents during their tenure and hand them over to the National Archives and Records Administration when they leave office.
source: people.com
