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Florida’s equivalent of a state treasurer wrote a letter to former President Trump, urging him to recoup an estimated $54,000 through the state’s unclaimed property program to help defend against the “very, very nasty people” coming after him.
Florida Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Jimmy Patronis told Trump in the letter that the state is proud to host several Trump properties and count him as a resident and that he admires the real estate mogul as a former small business owner for his attention to the customer.
Patronis said he conducted a search of the state’s public unclaimed property program’s database and found several assets the former president, his family members or his businesses could reclaim. He urged Trump to take action so that the former president can further fund his legal defenses in the multiple ongoing court cases he is facing.
The independently elected state official lambasted the prosecutions of the former president, offering to help personally process unclaimed property requests through his office’s fltreasurehunt.gov portal.
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Video“There are some very, very nasty people coming after you, and every dollar matters in your efforts to fight back against these radical state attorneys who have weaponized the courts,” Patronis wrote.
“We need you and your team to have every resource possible to get through these BS charges so you can get back to work in Making America Great Again.”
He defined “unclaimed property” as financial assets that are unknown, lost, inactive or abandoned, saying that the most common examples are dormant bank accounts or stocks and dividends. Typically, the property is held by the disbursing entity for several years before being handed over to the state.
Former President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, on March 31, 2023. (Reuters/Ricardo Arduengo)
The official also thanked Trump for his contributions to Florida and the nation writ-large, adding that he hopes to hear back from the former president on the matter.
A search by Fox News Digital of the Florida Department of Financial Services web portal returned one result for the Trump Organization totaling $3,000 in cashiers checks from JPMorganChase, and Trump’s name revealed nearly $10,000 in assets divided between an address in Volusia County, an address abutting the Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, and an unstated address.
Former President Trump and Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis (Getty Images/File)
There were also several entries under the name Ivana Trump, the former president’s late ex-wife, as well as many others under the names of Trump’s various properties, such as Trump National Doral as well as a resort in Sunny Isles Beach, upon which his name is licensed.
The former president faces several lawsuits against him, including in New York, Atlanta and South Florida, all of which he has characterized as “witch hunts” brought upon him through the machinations of President Biden.
He has also been held in contempt of court and fined $1,000 for each of 10 gag order violations by Judge Juan Merchan in the ongoing NY v. Trump trial.
Patronis’ office told Fox News Digital it has returned $34 million in unclaimed property in April alone and $2.4 billion since Patronis was elected in 2017.
The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
Charles Creitz is a reporter for Fox News Digital.
He joined Fox News in 2013 as a writer and production assistant.
Charles covers media, politics and culture for Fox News Digital.
Charles is a Pennsylvania native and graduated from Temple University with a B.A. in Broadcast Journalism. Story tips can be sent to charles.creitz@fox.com.
