Trump posts US$175 million bond in New York civil fraud case to avert asset seizures
- The bond prevents the New York attorney general from going after the former president’s properties including Trump Tower and his Mar-a-Lago estate
- A court also ordered Trump to stop verbal attacks on family members of a judge in his hush money trial
Donald Trump posted a US$175 million bond in his New York civil fraud case on Monday, averting asset seizures by state authorities that could have hobbled the former US president’s business empire.
The Republican Trump, set to face Democratic President Joe Biden in the November US election, was found liable on February 16 for fraudulently inflating his net worth by billions of dollars to secure better loan and insurance terms.
Trump originally needed to post a bond for US$454 million, but an appeal court on March 25 stayed enforcement of Justice Arthur Engoron’s judgment on condition that Trump pay the smaller sum within 10 days.
A three-judge panel of the appeal court will hear Trump’s appeal on the merits. The appeal court ruling reducing the bond is no indication of how the panel will ultimately rule.
The bond prevents New York Attorney General Letitia James from going after Trump’s properties, including Trump Tower, his 149.7-hectare (370-acre) resort and golf course in Westchester and his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.
Trump has denied wrongdoing and said the case is a political witch hunt by James, a Democrat who sued him in 2022.