The president's son Eric Trump has refused to comply with a subpoena in a New York state prosecutor's investigation of the Trump Organization, court documents revealed Monday.
President Donald Trump's entire private business entity has yet to comply with subpoenas from New York Attorney General Letitia James, James said in court documents.
New filings showed that James' civil investigation is based, in part, on former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen's testimony to Congress and seeks to learn whether the financial filings for the president's business were inflated or deflated to obtain loans or reduce potential taxes.
Prosecutors assert that hundreds of documents have been withheld by the Trump Organization in the inquiry.
The investigation into the Trump Organization and its financial records by the attorney general's office has been well known in New York legal and political circles for some time, but this latest batch of court documents confirmed the inquiry and its status for the first time.
And in a statement Monday, James said specifically that her office needs to speak with Eric Trump, executive vice president of this father's company.
"Nothing will stop us from following the facts and the law, wherever they may lead. For months, the Trump organization has made baseless claims in an effort to shield evidence from a lawful investigation into its financial dealings," James said.
"They have stalled, withheld documents, and instructed witnesses, including Eric Trump, to refuse to answer questions under oath. That's why we've filed a motion to compel the Trump Organization to comply with our office's lawful subpoenas for documents and testimony. These questions will be answered and the truth will be uncovered, because no one is above the law."
The attorney general's office also subpoenaed and sought documents from attorneys and development companies involved with the Trump Organization or several of his properties. Prosecutors argue that attorney-client privilege is being claimed improperly for several thousand documents being withheld by those firms.
The Trump properties that James said her office is investigating include the Seven Springs Estate, a 212-acre property just north of New York City that the company is seeking to develop; 40 Wall Street, a heavily leveraged building owned by the company in Lower Manhattan; Trump International Hotel and Tower Chicago; and Trump National Golf Club Los Angeles.
Hours after the filings, Eric Trump posted on Twitter about James, accusing her of taking action "on the eve of the Republican Convention for political points."
"Without any basis, the NYAG has pledged to take my father down from the moment she ran for office," the president's son wrote, calling James' actions "the highest level of prosecutorial misconduct."
