A New York City property tax agency was subpoenaed in a criminal investigation by the Manhattan district attorney into former President Donald Trump and his company, according to a Reuters report.
New York City Tax Commission President Frances Henn confirmed the subpoena to Reuters on Friday.
The subpoena provides additional insight into the broad investigation into possible tax and bank-related fraud by the Trump Organization led by Manhattan district attorney Cy Vance Jr.
The development suggests that prosecutors may be looking into potential efforts by the former president’s company to cut down real-estate taxes by playing down the value of some of its commercial properties.
The subpoena may also show possible discrepancies between the values the Trump Organization assigned to some commercial properties in tax filings and loan document which could boost a fraud charge, tax fraud lawyers told Reuters.
While Reuters points out that Vance has not commented specifically on the focus of his investigation it noted that in court filings Vance’s office said it was probing “possibly extensive and protracted criminal conduct” at the Trump Organization, including possible falsification of records as well as insurance and tax fraud.
The tax agency documents will likely contribute to helping investigators determine whether Trump’s business inflated the value of his properties to secure more desirable loans while simultaneously minimizing those values to avoid paying higher taxes for those properties.
