Trump's $454M judgment bond slashed by more than half in appeals court ruling

 An appeals court on Monday cut off former President Trump's bond payments, saying Trump must repay $175 million within the next 10 days.

Trump previously faced a Monday deadline to pay a $464 million bond payment as a result of civil fraud charges filed by New York Attorney General Letitia James.

Trump vows to fight NY AG case 'all the way to the US Supreme Court', deadline set to post $454 million

The New York Court of Appeals significantly reduced that bond, just hours before the deadline to raise $464 million. The court ordered that Trump deposit $175 million within 10 days.

Trump said he would "comply" with the appeals decision and posted the $175 million bond.

If Trump does not pay the $175 million by the new deadline, it would effectively bar James from efforts to seize Trump's assets as he continues to appeal the ruling by New York Judge Arthur Engoron.

"Judge Angorone has refused to accept the Appellate Division's decision regarding the statute of limitations. This is a confrontation between a judge and those who rule above him – a very poor situation in which to put the State of New York and the rule of law “Angorone has disrespected the Appellate Division and its very clear and precise decision,” Jay Trump posted on his Truth Social Monday. “He should be forced to do so, and at the same time, issue a gag order. "

Trump said Monday's ruling on appeal was "the 5th time they've been overturned in this case, which is a record."

Trump criticized Judge Arthur Angoron, saying, "His and Letitia James's credibility has been destroyed."

"We will abide by the Appellate Division's decision and either forfeit the bonds, equivalent securities or cash," Trump said. “It also shows how ridiculous and outrageous Angoron’s original $450 million decision was.”

Trump said in capital letters, "I did nothing wrong, and New York should never be put in a position like this again. Businesses are failing, violent crime is rising, and it is very important that this is addressed in its entirety." be resolved." As soon as possible. Thank you!"

Trump said Judges Angoron and Letitia James "should be forced to explain why they ruled that Mar-a-Lago was worth $18,000,000, when in fact, it was worth 50 to 100 times that amount." is more."

"How did the Attorney General of New York State force this corrupt judge to do this to help his story – and why?". He posted.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for James said Monday that Trump "still faces accountability for his staggering fraud."

James' spokesperson said, "The court has already found that he has engaged in fraud for years to falsely inflate his net worth and unjustly enrich himself, his family and his organization." "The $464 million judgment against Donald Trump and other defendants – plus interest – still stands."

Trump, the presumptive 2024 GOP presidential nominee, and his legal team had appealed and requested a stay of his $454 million civil fraud verdict. Trump's legal team said the initial requested bond was "unprecedented for a private company", and said it was a "practical impossibility" to post the full amount of the judgment.

Trump has vowed to fight the case "all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court if necessary."

In an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital on Friday, Trump said he could afford to pay the bond, but is pushing with his legal team to appeal the decision.

Trump said he has about $500 million in cash. His company, Trump Media & Technology Group, parent company of Truth Social, is scheduled to go public after a merger on Monday. The company will trade on Nasdaq as "DJT".

Trump owns more than 78 million shares of the stock, worth about $4 billion.

Trump said, "That doesn't mean I'm going to give money to an evil and incompetent judge — a puppet of a corrupt attorney general who is failing violent crime and immigrant crime and whose sole purpose in life is to get Trump out of office." Have to try." Fox News Digital, referring to Angoron and James.

However, at the moment, its shares are frozen. The company's board can vote to free up those assets if necessary.

Angoron's verdict came after a month-long non-jury trial stemming from James' years-long investigation. James, when campaigning to become Attorney General, vowed to "get Trump".

New York appeals court allows Trump, his sons to continue business, rejects request to delay payment

James once told a supporter on video, "We're definitely going to sue him, we're going to be really hurt."

Angoron ruled that Trump and the other defendants committed "persistent and repeated fraud," "falsifying business records," "issuing false financial statements," "conspiracy to falsify financial statements," "insurance fraud." " and were liable for "conspiracy to commit insurance fraud." ,

An appeals court overturned Angoron's decision to allow Trump and his sons to run the family business, as they were appealing the decision.

James initially sued Trump and the Trump Organization, accusing them of fraudulent business practices. The court proceedings were controversial, with Angoron repeatedly placing Trump under a partial gag order to prevent him from criticizing court staff.

Trump dismissed the lawsuit as a "witch hunt" throughout the process, and accused both Angoron and James of working as political operatives for the Democrats. Trump's legal team also repeatedly criticized the lack of a jury in the trial.

"There was never an option to choose a jury trial," a Trump spokesperson told Fox News Digital. "It is unfortunate that a jury will not be able to hear how absurd the merits of this case are and conclude that no wrongdoing ever occurred."

Placeholder Trump and his family denied any wrongdoing, with the former president saying his property was undervalued. Trump's legal team insisted that there were disclaimers in his financial statements, and made it clear to the banks that they should make their own assessment.

Throughout the trial, Trump's lawyers brought witnesses, including former top executives at Deutsche Bank, who testified that the banks solicited additional business from Trump, whom they viewed as a "whale of clients".

Trump's defense also featured expert witnesses, including New York University accounting professor Eli Bartow, who reviewed Trump's financial statements in the case and said he found no evidence of accounting fraud.

Bartov testified last month that Trump's financial statements did not violate accounting principles, and he suggested that anything problematic — such as a huge year-to-year jump in the appraised value of his Trump Tower penthouse — was simply There was an error.

Bartov testified, "My main conclusion is that there is no evidence of any accounting fraud." Trump's financial statements, he said, "were not materially misrepresented."