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President Donald Trump's administration hit New York Attorney General Letitia James with a federal criminal referral for instances of alleged mortgage fraud on Tuesday (April 15), according to a letter obtained by the New York Post.
Federal Housing Finance Agency Director William Pulte accused James, a Democrat who famously filed a civil lawsuit against the Trump Organization and worked with the Manhattan district attorney's office in its criminal investigation of the organization, of having "falsified records" to get home loans for a property in Virginia, which she allegedly claimed was her "principal residence" in 2023, despite serving as New York state prosecutor, in a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche. The alleged incident occurred in late August 2023, just prior to the beginning of the civil fraud trial against the Trump Organization, which concluded with a $454 million judgment.
“Ms. James was the sitting Attorney General of New York and is required by law to have her primary residence in the state of New York — even though her mortgage applications list her intent to have the Norfolk, VA, property as her primary home,” the letter states. “It appears Ms. James’ property and mortgage-related misrepresentations may have continued to her recent 2023 Norfolk, VA property purchase in order to secure a lower interest rate and more favorable loan terms.”
James is also accused of purchasing a five-family dwelling in Brooklyn in February 2001, however, “consistently misrepresented the same property as only having four units in both building permit applications and numerous mortgage documents and applications,” according to the letter.
Several documents attached to the letter listed James' father as a co-signer, but falsely identified their relationship as "husband and wife" in 1983 and 2000.
“While this was a long time ago, it raises serious concerns about the validity of Ms. James’ representations on mortgage applications,” Pulthe wrote.
James denied the accusations in a statement shared by a spokesman for her office.
“Attorney General James is focused every single day on protecting New Yorkers, especially as this Administration weaponizes the federal government against the rule of law and the Constitution. She will not be intimidated by bullies — no matter who they are,” the spokesman said.