Trump charity agrees to dissolve amid allegations of a ‘shocking pattern of illegality’

President Trump’s charity, the Donald J. Trump Foundation, has agreed to dissolve amid allegations from the New York Attorney General’s Office that it engaged in a “shocking pattern of illegality.”

New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood (D) announced Tuesday that her office will continue to pursue its lawsuit against the foundation, which seeks $2.8 million in restitution plus penalties, as well as an order barring Trump and his three oldest children — Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump and Eric Trump — from serving on the boards of other New York charities.

Under the agreement, the foundation will dissolve under judicial supervision and provide the court with a list within 30 days of the not-for-profit organizations that receive money from the charity’s remaining assets.

{mosads}Underwood’s lawsuit, filed in June, alleged that Trump used the charity for political and personal gain. Underwood said the investigation she opened against the foundation in 2016 revealed the charity “was little more than a checkbook for payments to not-for-profits from Mr. Trump or the Trump Organization.”

“This resulted in multiple violations of state and federal law because payments were made using Foundation money regardless of the purpose of the payment,” she argued in the court filing.

“Mr. Trump used charitable assets to pay off the legal obligations of entities he controlled, to promote Trump hotels, to purchase personal items, and to support his presidential election campaign.”

Underwood said the stipulation reached Tuesday accomplishes a key piece of the lawsuit.

“Under the terms, the Trump Foundation can only dissolve under judicial supervision — and it can only distribute its remaining charitable assets to reputable organizations approved by my office.”

The agreement comes after a judge on the New York Supreme Court last month allowed the state’s lawsuit against the Trump Foundation to go forward.

“Our petition detailed a shocking pattern of illegality involving the Trump Foundation — including unlawful coordination with the Trump presidential campaign, repeated and willful self-dealing, and much more,” Underwood said in a statement.

Updated at 11:36 a.m.