Left: New York Attorney General Letitia James speaks during a press conference regarding former US President Donald Trump and his family’s financial fraud case on September 21, 2022 in New York (photo by YUKI IWAMURA/AFP via Getty Images). Right: Donald Trump speaks at a ‘Save America’ rally on October 22, 2022 in Robstown, Texas (photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images).
The Trump administration on Monday accused New York Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat, of mortgage fraud in a criminal referral to the U.S. Department of Justice.
The 3-page referral was sent by Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Bill Pulte to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.
The agency alleges James, in “multiple instances, falsified bank documents and property records” in order to secure “government backed assistance and loans and more favorable loan terms.”
The Empire State’s top law enforcement official has long been a thorn in President Donald Trump’s side. In 2019, James began a civil fraud investigation into the Trump Organization, and a lawsuit followed in 2022. In 2023, on motions for summary judgment, the company and several Trump family members were found liable for fraud. In early 2024, the judge overseeing the matter issued a civil penalty of $354 million.
