Thread by @hvogell

We just dropped a story & podcast about deep-seated corruption in old New York, property tax avoidance by the upper crust, and the President’s company.

Here’s how we reported out a story whose origins predated 9-11:

THREAD

@katherrun at WNYC got a tip that we should talk to some of the 18 tax assessors who were indicted in 2002 for taking bribes from building owners to lower tax bills.

We should ask them about Trump Org, our tipster said.

With help from our crack senior researcher Doris Burke, Katherine and I cast a wide net, calling scores of phone numbers, knocking on doors, handing out business cards, and leaving notes in mailboxes.

We hit lots of wrong numbers, and talked to wives, mothers, and neighbors – even once learning from building staff that the man we sought had died years before.

We tried to talk to people who worked in the assessors office but weren’t in on it, too, along with investigators, lawyers, city officials, NYC real estate experts — basically, anyone who might know something about the case.

(Thanks @lydiadepillis for that evening doorknock!).

Enough time had passed that some people were ready to talk. They included Frank Valvo, 88, a former NYC tax assessor who served 1.5 yrs in prison for taking bribes.

He said he heard corrupt assessors talking about Trump Org joining the scheme

When we asked,Trump Org denied that

An ex Trump Org employee also said Donald Trump arranged a meeting between another employee and a middleman whose name later surfaced in connection with the bribery, tax consultant Tom McArdle.

At the alleged meeting, McArdle got a check, & what my source called “bogus” info about the Plaza Hotel’s finances to help assessors lower its valuation.

We don’t know Trump’s understanding of the alleged meeting; No evidence has emerged he personally took part in the scheme

In the end, 6 sources said Trump Org paid bribes thru a middleman to lower its tax bills. Their experiences differed, but fit together like pieces of a puzzle.

2 said they personally accepted bribes to change the assessment for Trump Org’s 40 Wall St.

Several mentioned McArdle, who died in 2013, as a go-between with Trump Org (which, again, has denied wrongdoing).

We looked at historical tax assessment data, too. It showed dips and rises consistent with our sources’ accounts, but it was not conclusive.

Other factors – like NYC’s economy, and building bankruptcies or renovations – were at play, too.

The scandal cast a long shadow for the convicted assessors, most of whom served 1-3 yrs in prison. They are aging, in poor health, struggling to pay restitution.

The wealthy property owners never answered for the benefit they derived from the scheme, which the city said surpassed $150 million.

propublica.org/article/trumps…

Do you know anything about the scandal & Trump Org? Please reach out.