11 years ago, Trump made a big deal out of the Trump Soho, a 46-story luxury hotel/condo that paid Trump for the use of his name and the dubious management services of the Trump Organization; now, after a string of scandals including the revelation that Trump’s business-partners were money-laundering Russian mafiosi, the revelation that Trump had defrauded buyers with lies about the sell-through, and the toxification of Trump’s name for anyone with a lick of sense of decency, the business is parting ways with Trump.
In November 2011, the Trumps and other defendants paid 90 percent of $3.16 million in deposits to settle claims from buyers of condominium units that Mr. Trump, his children and others had inflated sales figures in what turned out to be a struggling project. The Manhattan district attorney, Cyrus Vance Jr., was pursuing a criminal investigation into the same issue, The New York Times reported last year. Some prosecutors felt they had enough evidence to build a case, but Mr. Vance declined to pursue charges, several news organizations reported last month.
At the same time, a separate lawsuit alleged that the project was backed by felons and financing from Russia. Felix Sater, a Russian deal maker, felon and F.B.I. informant, had helped facilitate the deal, the lawsuit said.As time went on, the connection with Mr. Sater caused headaches for Mr. Trump through the campaign and the first year of his presidency. The Times reported this year how Mr. Sater continued to push for a Trump Tower in Moscow, even during the presidential campaign.
Trump Organization Will Exit From Its Struggling SoHo Hotel in New York
[Ben Protess, Steve Eder and Eric Lipton/New York Times]
(Images: Trump’s Hair)