Eric Trump criticized a judge's appraisal of his father's Mar-a-Lago resort in a New York fraud case, asserting Tuesday that the opulent Florida property's actual value could soar beyond the sum of one billion dollars.
"In an attempt to destroy my father and kick him out of New York, a judge just ruled that Mar-a-Lago, in Palm Beach Florida, is only worth approximately '18 million dollars'…Mar-a-Lago is speculated to be worth well over a billion dollars, making it arguably the most valuable residential property in the country. It is all so corrupt and coordinated," Eric Trump posted on "X."
In Tuesday's filing, Justice Arthur Engoron determined that former President Donald Trump engaged in fraud by inflating the valuations of properties, including Mar-a-Lago and Trump Park Avenue in New York. According to The Hill, Engoron cited a Palm Beach County Assessor's appraisal from 2011-2021, which valued Mar-a-Lago between $18 million and $27.6 million, a fraction of Trump's claimed worth.
In a separate post, Eric Trump shared an unverified screenshot showcasing residential listings in Palm Beach, Florida, ostensibly displaying market values surpassing the $35 million mark.
Accompanying this visual evidence, Eric Trump voiced his dismay, asserting that these residences, though boasting substantial valuations, pale compared to the grandeur of Mar-a-Lago. He highlighted their markedly smaller size, lack of a beachfront location, and the inability to span from one side of Palm Beach Island to the other. In doing so, he decried the situation as a "travesty of justice" and a source of embarrassment for the court.
The ruling emerges within the broader context of a lawsuit by N.Y. Attorney General Letitia James against Donald Trump, the Trump Organization, Eric Trump, and Donald Trump Jr.
In a legal action with $250 million at stake, the defendants are accused of a lengthy and pervasive pattern of alleged fraud spanning over a decade.
The lawsuit posits that Trump's organization executed a calculated strategy, systematically adjusting the valuations of its assets through artificial inflation and deflation, all to achieve lower tax obligations and more advantageous insurance terms.
In prior sworn testimony, Donald Trump asserted that the values appearing on his financial statements held negligible significance, citing the presence of disclaimers on these documents explicitly cautioning against placing trust in their contents, according to the Associated Press.
Justice Engoron's ruling revokes specific business licenses held by Trump and mandates the appointment of an independent monitor to sustain ongoing oversight of the Trump Organization.
Additionally, the ruling firmly dismisses Trump's eleventh-hour effort to have the entire case summarily dismissed. Consequently, the remaining claims within the lawsuit are slated to advance to trial, with proceedings scheduled to commence on Monday.
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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