Giuliani set to appear in New York City courtroom after missing deadline to turn over assets
Rudy Giuliani is set to appear in a New York City courtroom Thursday in connection to his defamation case to explain why he has yet to surrender his belongings as part of the judgment.
U.S. District Judge Lewis Liman issued the order on Monday after plaintiffs Ruby Freeman and her daughter, Wandrea “Shaye” Moss, reported to the court that Giuliani had cleared out his apartment when representatives of theirs visited the premises.
Liman had initially set Oct. 29 as the deadline for Giuliani to surrender his possessions to Freeman and Moss’ representatives. The judge then ordered Giuliani and his lawyers to appear in court on Thursday. The status conference was initially set to be by phone but was then switched to an in-person appearance.
In a letter to the court filed on Monday, Freeman and Moss’ attorney wrote that the plaintiff’s representatives had visited Giuliani’s apartment on Oct. 31 after getting access the previous day. Upon arriving, they found the apartment had been cleared out four weeks prior.
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“Save for some rugs, a dining room table, some stray pieces of small furniture and inexpensive wall art, and a handful of smaller items like dishes and stereo equipment, the Apartment has been emptied of all of its contents,” the filing read.
Freeman and Moss filed another letter Tuesday after receiving reports of Giuliani driving his Mercedes-Benz in Palm Beach, Florida, that was ordered to be turned over to the plaintiffs one week prior, according to court documents filed.
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“This latest revelation indicates that he either does not understand those obligations or, more likely, is knowingly disregarding them,” the filing read.
Ted Goodman, Giuliani’s spokesperson, told Fox News Digital: “Opposing counsel, acting either negligently or deliberately in a deceptive manner, are simply attempting to further bully and intimidate Mayor Giuliani until he is rendered penniless and homeless. This is just another way that they’ve weaponized our once-sacred justice system. It should concern each and every American.”
“Mayor Giuliani has made available his property and possessions as ordered. A few items were put into storage over the course of the past year and anything else removed was related to his two livestream programs that stream each and every weeknight across his social media platforms,” Goodman said.
Giuliani had been ordered to pay $148,169,000 to Freeman and Moss after he falsely accused them of committing election fraud in the 2020 election. Both Freeman and Moss were formerly Georgia election workers.
The former New York City mayor and former personal lawyer to President-elect Trump was on trial for the defamation suit in Washington, D.C., which wrapped up late last year.
U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell had already awarded default judgment to Freeman and Moss in August.
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His possessions include his $5 million Upper East Side apartment, a 1980 Mercedes, his television and luxury watches.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.