WASHINGTON, June 27 (Reuters) – New York prosecutors have told lawyers for former US President Donald Trump they are due to respond by Monday with the latest arguments as to why criminal charges should not be taken against his family business, the Washington Post reported on Sunday.

The Post, citing two people familiar with the matter, said the deadline was another strong signal that Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance and New York Attorney General Letitia James were considering criminal charges against the company. as an entity.

The New York Times reported on Friday that Vance could announce charges against the Trump Organization and its CFO, Allen Weisselberg, as early as next week. Read more

A lawyer for the company did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for Vance declined to confirm or comment on the information.

Any criminal charge would be the first of Vance’s investigation into Trump and his business connections.

Legal experts have said that an indictment against the Trump Organization could bankrupt the company by undermining its relationships with banks and other business partners.

Vance’s office said it was investigating “possibly widespread and prolonged criminal conduct” at the Trump Organization, including tax and insurance evasion and falsification of business records.

It is possible that no charges will be laid.

Vance’s investigation could, however, complicate any return to politics for Trump, who lost some of his ability to communicate publicly after being permanently banned from Twitter (TWTR.N) and suspended for two years by Facebook (FB.O ).

Court records and subpoenaed files in connection with the investigation show that Weisselberg and his son Barry received benefits and corporate gifts worth tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars over the course of their years of association with the Trump organization.

If they did not properly account for this money on tax returns and other financial documents, they could be in legal danger, legal experts have said.

James’ office investigated whether the Trump Organization had inflated the values ​​of certain properties for better loan terms and lowered their values ​​for tax relief.

Reporting by Phil Stewart, Julia Harte, Jan Wolfe Editing by Sonya Hepinstall

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