New York Attorney General Letitia James vowed to fight President Donald Trump. She’s a classic case of the dangers of Trump derangement syndrome infesting elected offices. Whether these legal challenges would have gone anywhere is another story, but her crusade could end soon, not by her choice. She might be facing federal charges for mortgage fraud. Reportedly, she has been referred to the Justice Department for potential prosecution (via NY Post):
New York Attorney General Letitia James was hit with a federal criminal referral for instances of alleged mortgage fraud on Tuesday, according to a letter obtained by The Post.
Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director William Pulte sent the missive to Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy AG Todd Blanche, alleging that James had “falsified records” to get home loans for a property in Virginia that she claimed was her “principal residence” in 2023 — while still serving as a New York state prosecutor.
That occurred in late August 2023, weeks before James began her civil fraud trial against the Trump Organization for over-inflating the values of many of its properties, which ended in a $454 million judgment.
In February 2001, James also purchased a five-family dwelling in Brooklyn — but has “consistently misrepresented the same property as only having four units in both building permit applications and numerous mortgage documents and applications,” the letter noted.
Pulte attached several documents also showing that James purchased another property with her father as a co-signer — but falsely listed the pair 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,” he wrote.
The letter referenced earlier media reports about purportedly falsifying her residence status to get a lower mortgage rate in Virginia and misrepresenting her five-unit residence in Brooklyn, that were first reported by the outlet White Collar Fraud.
James granted power of attorney to Shamice Thompson-Hairston, a relative, to sign an Aug. 17, 2023, document authorizing the purchase of the first property, according to legal filings reported by the outlet.
She secured a $218,780 mortgage to do so.
Loans secured for the latter property could have reduced her mortgage interest rate by as much as 1% and had lower monthly payments under the federal Home Assistance Modification Program (HAMP) since it was listed as containing just four units, according to Pulte.
The publication added that wire fraud, mail fraud, and bank fraud are just some of the charges James could face.
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