Insiders believe that Donald Trump might let New York Attorney General Letitia James seize his properties as he faces a Monday deadline to post a $454 million bond in the civil fraud case against him in New York.
The ex-US president reportedly has been struggling to raise the cash for the bond either from banks or wealthy friends with his lawyers claiming on Monday that it was a “practical impossibility.”
While some reports have raised speculation that Trump may carry out a Chapter 11 filing (bankruptcy) to protect his prize real estate assets across Manhattan, New York, experts said bankruptcy would create unwelcome complications as the 2024 election season comes to a head.
A report by the NY Post says Trump could let the deadline pass, leaving it to New York Attorney General Letitia James to seize Trump’s bank accounts or buildings including Trump Tower, from which he declared his 2016 presidential run, and which famously includes his personal penthouse.
It’s an option Trump could reportedly use because he believes the chances are good that he could recover the assets on appeal, even if he is forced to take his case to the US Supreme Court, according to friends.
“Even if there is a taking, it doesn’t mean he can’t take it back later,” a source close to Trump told The NY Post.
A decision by Trump to do nothing gives the New York AG’s Office the right to sell off any properties it confiscates in order to recover the cash penalties it is owed.
“They are going after the money and that’s all he has a right to get back, not the buildings — unless the judgment is reversed before they are sold,” said Adam Leitman Bailey, a New York-based attorney who’s focused on the commercial real estate sector.
Sources friendly with Trump say the ex-president believes he has a strong case if he appeals. Among other considerations, if the decision is not overturned, “it will have a chilling effect on people who do business in New York because it could happen to anyone,” according to one insider.
“There will be severe consequences — not an insurrection. People will stop doing business in New York. No one will take the risk, and lenders are now spooked. The real estate market is already a disaster, with office buildings worth a fraction of what they were once worth, and there are metastasizing effects when a large part of the city’s budget is from real estate.”
According to the report, a source close to Trump insisted that he could raise funds from wealthy “friends and supporters,” but so far has not chosen this path.
“He’s not an ‘I’m passing the hat’ man — he doesn’t want pity or for anyone to feel sorry for him,” the source claimed. “He will do what he has to do. He has plenty of wealthy friends who would help him if asked, but he’s not asking, as far as I’m aware.”
