Manhattan DA Expands Probe Into Trump Company to Include Family Estate: Report

By Celine Castronuovo, The Hill

17 January 21

probe into the Trump Organization's business dealings led by the office of Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance has reportedly expanded to include the Trump family's Westchester County estate.

CNN reported Friday that court documents it had obtained revealed President Trump’s son Eric Trump, who serves as the executive vice president of the Trump Organization, was directly involved in discussions on the 212-acre property, called Seven Springs.

Town officials have reportedly been sent grand jury subpoenas seeking information surrounding any conversations or correspondence they have had with the Trump Organization on its development plans.

Roland Baroni, a lawyer for the town of North Castle, N.Y., told CNN that the town had received and complied with a subpoena "asking for the planning board files, any correspondence, any email" exchanged between the town and the Trump Organization.

North Castle is one of three municipalities the large family compound covers.

CNBC reported Friday that a lawyer for the town of Bedford, N.Y., said they had also received a subpoena from Vance's office sometime “before Christmas” for information and records relating to the estate.

The town supervisor for the third town, New Castle, N.Y., declined CNBC's request for comment.

People familiar with the investigation told CNN that the Trump Organization had also been subpoenaed for information on the property, including tax deductions the company took after donating a portion of the land to a public trust for conservation.

The Hill has reached out to the Trump Organization for comment.

According to CNN, Trump’s business sought to develop the property multiple times, including putting together plans to potentially build a golf course or a community of residential homes.

By making a land donation for conservation, a property is able to take a tax deduction based on the value of the property. Vance’s investigation is looking into whether the value was inflated on the property to get a more beneficial tax deduction.

Court filings indicated that 158 acres of the Westchester County property were given to the North American Land Trust with an appraised value of $21.1 million.

The property, which the Trump Organization purchased in 1995 for $7.5 million, is also part of a civil investigation being conducted by New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) into whether the company lied about the value of certain assets to receive more beneficial loans and tax benefits.

This comes as The Associated Press reported Friday that Trump’s former personal attorney Michael Cohen had been interviewed for hours this week by Vance’s office, at least partially on Trump’s relationship with Deutsche Bank.

Trump has repeatedly claimed that the investigations by Vance and James, both Democrats, are part of a “witch hunt” with political motivations.