Judge Requires Scottish Officials to Keep Being Sketchy About Trump

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A Scottish judge on Thursday fired at attempts to force the government to investigate former President Donald Trump’s purchase of two golf courses there, leaving the matter in the hands of the country’s top prosecutor.

As in the United States, where politicians failed to hold Trump accountable and it was up to local prosecutors to conduct a separate investigation, in Scotland the pressure to act is now on Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain.

The Scottish government has urged to put Trump on a long-awaited financial colonoscopy for his shady golf resort real estate deals, but Lord Sandison’s 44-page judicial decision means officials may continue to drag on their feet.

There have long been questions about how Trump raised a reported $ 60 million in 2014 to acquire Trump Turnberry, a golf resort in the windy and green hills of Ayrshire’s Scottish county.

But when New York-based nonprofit watchdog Avaaz called for the Scottish government to investigate, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon handed over the money by placing that responsibility on the country’s top prosecutor. Annoyingly, the officers also refused to say whether they were actually acting or not.

Avaaz sued earlier this year, filing a lawsuit over why ministers should be forced to use a new tool against money laundering, called the “unexplained wealth order.” Targeting him by a UWO is a civil matter, not a criminal one. But it would still force Trump to explain how he got the money — or risk getting it. The lawsuit also tried to place the responsibility on government ministers, who were under political pressure to act against Trump.

The judge, Craig Sandison, held a hearing in October in which a government barrister argued that the task should be left to the nation’s chief prosecutor and the entire process should be treated in complete secrecy.

The government even borrowed the CIA’s infamous “Glomar response” by wanting to “not confirm or deny” any investigation.

The judge’s order on Thursday fully sided with the government, leaving the matter to Bain, the country’s key lawyer. Sandison also declined to indicate whether he thinks there is a validity to a potential investigation.

“I would like to clarify that I have not expressed any views on the question of whether [criminal law] the requirements are or appear to be met in President Trump’s case, ”he wrote.

And he clarified that the government could still go ahead and one day seek a judge’s permission to review Trump’s finances.

“Further, for the unseen Scottish Ministers can still make a UWO application relating to President Trump’s Scottish assets,” Sandison wrote.

But he also stressed that government ministers have “broad discretion” in any future decision to use this anti-money laundering tool.

Shortly after the decision, Avaaz legal director Nick Flynn released a statement requesting action from Bain.

“The law may have been clarified, but the cloud of suspicion still remains over Trump’s purchase of Turnberry. In any proposal, the threshold to pursue a UWO to investigate the purchase could easily be exceeded. The Lord Advocate must take immediate action. in the interest of the rule of law and transparency, and seek a clear explanation of where the $ 60m used to buy Turnberry came from, ”he said.

A spokesman for the Trump Organization’s corporate entity there told The Daily Beast that “Lord Sandison’s decision to reject this ridiculous petition is not surprising.” Sarah Malone, executive vice president of Trump International Scotland, has previously issued a statement criticizing the lawsuit for “blocking the courts in this ridiculous charade.”

The Scottish government has issued a statement acknowledging only that a judicial decision has been made.

Trump’s two golf courses in Scotland continue to generate questions. Financial documents show that they are losing money every year, making millions of dollars in losses — but they remain open.

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