Trump held in contempt for failing to provide business files

A New York judge on Monday found former President Donald Trump in contempt of court for failing to hand over documents that are being sought as part of a civil probe into his business practices.

Judge Arthur Engoron had ordered Trump to comply with a subpoena seeking documents from him by March 31. Engoron ordered Trump to pay a fine of $10,000 a day since he missed the deadline.

"Mr. Trump, I know you take your business seriously, and I take mine seriously," Engoron said before issuing the ruling.

Why is Trump being investigated?

Trump had been ordered by New York Attorney General Letitia James to cooperate with her office in an investigation into his business dealings.

James and her office have been looking into whether the Trump Organization misstated the value of assets to get loans and tax breaks.

Investigators from her office earlier said they had evidence that Trump may have engaged in fraudulent practices when it came to financial statements for more than a decade, according to court filings.

Trump, a Republican, has been fighting James in court over the investigation, calling the investigation a politically motivated "witch hunt" since James is a Democrat.

One of Trump's lawyers, Alina Habba, repeatedly insisted she went to great lengths to comply with the subpoena, even traveling to Florida to ask Trump for any documents he may have.

"The contempt motion is inappropriate and misleading," Habba said.

"He compiled..there are no more documents left to produce by President Trump," Habba added.

rm/wmr (Reuters, AP)