NEW YORK (AP) A judge ruled Tuesday that Donald Trump committed fraud for years while building the real estate empire that catapulted him to fame and the White House, and he ordered some of the former presidents companies removed from his control and dissolved.

Judge Arthur Engoron, ruling in a civil lawsuit brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James, found that Trump and his company deceived banks, insurers and others by massively overvaluing his assets and exaggerating his net worth on paperwork used in making deals and securing loans.

Engoron ordered that some of Trumps business licenses be rescinded as punishment, making it difficult or impossible for them to do business in New York, and said he would continue to have an independent monitor oversee Trump Organization operations.

If not successfully appealed, the order would strip Trump of his authority to make strategic and financial decisions over some of his key properties in the state.

Trump, in a series of statements, railed against the decision, calling it un-American and part of an ongoing plot to damage his campaign to return to the White House.

My Civil rights have been violated, and some Appellate Court, whether federal or state, must reverse this horrible, un-American decision, he wrote on his Truth Social site. He insisted his company had done a magnificent job for New York State and done business perfectly, calling it A very sad Day for the New York State System of Justice!