(NewsReady.com) – Former President Donald Trump posted a $175 million bond in New York in his civil fraud case on April 1. The state Supreme Court rejected the bond hours after it was submitted. The setback could be a disaster for the former president.
Trump was originally supposed to post a bond of approximately $454 million. After the former president’s legal team petitioned the court and stated it was not able to secure a bond company, an appeals court lowered the amount to $175 million, but he had to pay it within 10 days. The bond is a way to ensure Attorney General Letitia James doesn’t begin seizing his other assets and properties to pay the judgment while he’s appealing the case.
The former president met the deadline after billionaire Don Hankey’s company, Knight Specialty Insurance Company, agreed to put up the bond. However, the state Supreme Court’s electronic filing system showed that it was “returned for correction.” The former president reportedly has to upload a current financial statement.
Hankey told Reuters that he believes it was rejected because he didn’t charge Trump a high enough fee. He wouldn’t say how much he charged but said it was “low” because Knight Insurance didn’t think they were taking on much risk. Hankey said the company thought the process would be easy, but “it’s not turning out that way.”
James filed paperwork with the court, asking that Knight Insurance provide proof that it has the assets necessary to pay if the former president’s appeal fails. Hankey claimed Trump offered $175 million in cash and that the money is being held at a brokerage firm that Knight has access to if needed.
A court hearing is scheduled for April 22 to discuss the bond. If the court’s rejection holds firm, James could begin seizing the former president’s assets. Jon Gabrielsen, an economist, told Newsweek that includes the cash in the former president’s bank accounts.
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