Thread by @arapaho415

@lovelifetodaypl @ThomasS4217 Interesting in light of what Michael Wolffe says in "Siege:"
1/ p 13
"Real estate was the world's favorite money-laundering currency, and Trump's B-level real estate business--relentlessly marketed by Trump as triple A--was...explicitly designed to appeal to money launderers."

@lovelifetodaypl @ThomasS4217 2/ p 14
"Trump, Epstein knew, had been loaning out his name in real estate deals -- that is, for an ample fee. Trump would serve as a front man to disguise the actual ownership in a real estate transaction. (con't)

@lovelifetodaypl @ThomasS4217 3/ ...(This was, in a sense, another variation of Trump's basic business model of licensing his name for commercial properties owned by someone else.)"
"But as he [Epstein] prepared to finalize his purchase for the house [Maison de L’Amitie], Epstein discovered that Trump (con't)

@lovelifetodaypl @ThomasS4217 4/ ...who was severely cash-constrained at the time, had bid $41 million for the property and bought it out from under Epstein through an entity called Trump Properties LLC, 👉entirely financed by Deutsche Bank👈... (con't)

@lovelifetodaypl @ThomasS4217 5/ ...which was already carrying a substantial number of troubled loans to the Trump Organization and to Trump personally."
"A furious Epstein, certain that Trump was merely fronting for the real owners, threatened to expose the deal which was getting extensive coverage...(con't)

@lovelifetodaypl @ThomasS4217 6/ ...in Florida papers."
"But if Epstein knew some of Trump's secrets, Trump knew some of Epstein's."
"Just as the enmity between the two friends increased over the house purchase, Epstein found himself under investigation by the Palm Beach police." (more...)

@lovelifetodaypl @ThomasS4217 7/ Of course we know Maison de L’Amitie was purchased by Dmitry Rybolovlev for $96 million in 2008.
p 15⤵️
"Trump had, miraculously, earned $55 million without putting up a dime. Or, more likely, Trump merely earned a fee for hiding the real owner... (con't)

@lovelifetodaypl @ThomasS4217 8/ -- a shadow owner quite possibly being funneled cash by Rybolovlev for other reasons beyond the value of the house. Or, possibly, 👉the real owner and real buyer were one and the same👈. (con't)

@lovelifetodaypl @ThomasS4217 9/ ...👉Rybolovlev might have, in effect, paid himself for the house, thereby cleansing the additional $55 million for the second purchase of the house👈."
Here's more on this deal, from Jun 2008 (open tweet and scroll up and down). /end