The New York attorney general, Letitia James, has accused Trump of using misleading financial statements to make himself and his firms wealthier by helping him broker deals and obtain financing. Based on her three-year investigation, James says Trump owes at least $250m for committing fraud.
In an opening statement, Kevin Wallace, a New York state lawyer, said Trump had illegally gen-18 erated more than $1bn by describing his finances to banks and insurers in a "materially inaccurate way".
Wallace said: "This isn't business as usual, and this isn't how sophisticated parties deal with each other.
These are not victimless crimes." Speaking outside the court, James said: "My message is simple: No matter how powerful you are, no matter how much money you think you may have, no one is above the law." Trump, who is far ahead in polls to become the Republican nominee for the next presidential election, launched into a tirade against the legal action against him as he arrived in court, saying: "This is a continuation of the single greatest witch-hunt of all time.
"We have a great company. I built a great company. It's tremendous," he continued. "It's got some of the greatest real estate assets in the world. And now I have to go in before a rogue judge." He said his financial statements were "phenomenal" and called James, who is black, a "racist" and a "horror show".
He added: "These are corrupt people we are dealing with. I don't think the people of this country are going to stand for it.
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