BUFFALO, N.Y. — The New York Attorney General's Office said it has informed the Trump Organization its investigation into the organization, which has been ongoing since 2019, is no longer simply a civil case.

A spokesperson in a brief statement said the office is now actively investigating in a "criminal capacity," along with the Manhattan District Attorney's Office.

"That type of collaboration is entirely appropriate and not uncommon,” former NY Attorney General Dennis Vacco said. “Back in my time, when I was the attorney general, we collaborated frequently with the then-DA in New York County.”

Vacco, a Republican and now partner at Lippes Matthias in Buffalo, said the AG Office's authority to conduct criminal investigations is limited, so it will often team up with other entities like state police or district attorneys to stimulate latent authority.

"What is unusual, I think, is the fact that they publicly announced the fact that they were now collaborating," he said.

He speculated the office made the announcement perhaps to get ahead of the Trump Organization controlling the messaging. Vacco warned it's not necessarily a precursor to formal charges.

"We shouldn't presume from the collaboration now with the AG and the DA that there will ultimately be a prosecution of President Trump, or for that matter, not even of the Trump Organization or any individuals in the Trump Organization,” he said.

However, the former AG said the collaboration between the office and the New York County district attorney likely signals they believe there is questionable and potentially criminal conduct. Attorney General Tish James and DA Cy Vance's investigations have reportedly overlapped as they've looked into things like real estate transactions, bank loans and tax records.

"Clearly it's not a positive message for the Trump Organization, because now you have the state attorney general with all of the vast resources of that office, collaborating with the DA's office in Manhattan, which is probably the largest DA's office in all of New York state," Vacco said.

He said the investigation is still fraught with questions about statutes of limitation, the legality of investigations starting when Trump was still president and even whether these offices should be the primary investigators, as opposed to the Department of Justice. Vacco, who also served as U.S. attorney for the Western District of New York, noted the DOJ has been noticeably silent.

"We need to be careful that we don't overly weaponize prosecutions here," he said. "For a local DA to strike up an investigation against a sitting president, I'm not sure that's exactly what the framers of the constitution intended."

Vacco said the complicating factors are likely another reason for the collaboration, but they will need to be sorted out prior to any criminal charges, if prosecutors choose to bring them.