By Joe Udo
NEW YORK (CONVERSEER) – New York Attorney General Letitia James has been indicted by a federal grand jury on two counts related to alleged mortgage fraud, becoming the second high-profile critic of former President Donald Trump to face criminal prosecution in recent weeks.
The indictment, filed on Thursday in the Eastern District of Virginia, accuses James of bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution. She is scheduled to make her initial court appearance before a magistrate judge in Norfolk, Virginia, on 24 October.
Lindsey Halligan, the interim U.S. Attorney for the district, is leading the prosecution. “No one is above the law. The charges as alleged in this case represent intentional, criminal acts and tremendous breaches of the public’s trust,” Halligan said. “The facts and the law in this case are clear, and we will continue following them to ensure that justice is served.”
U.S. District Judge Jamar Walker, an appointee of former President Joe Biden, was randomly assigned to preside over the case.
Allegations Over Norfolk Property
Prosecutors allege that in 2020, James purchased a Norfolk property under a “second home rider” agreement, which required her to use the house as a secondary residence in exchange for favourable mortgage terms. Instead, she allegedly rented the property to a family of three, a use that would not have qualified for those benefits.
According to the indictment, this arrangement resulted in nearly $19,000 in improper financial gains over the course of the loan. Prosecutors also claim James misrepresented the property’s use in insurance and tax documents, further concealing the alleged fraud.
The charges stem from a criminal referral filed in April by Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director Bill Pulte, who alleged that James falsely declared the Virginia property as a primary residence while serving as New York’s Attorney General — a position that legally requires her to maintain her primary home in New York.
Pulte has also submitted similar referrals against Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, both Trump critics, but James is the only one to face charges so far.
James Denies Allegations, Calls Case Political
In a statement, James described the charges as “a continuation of the president’s desperate weaponisation of our justice system,” accusing Trump of using federal agencies for political retaliation.
“These charges are baseless, and the president’s own public statements make clear that his only goal is political retribution at any cost,” she said. James has retained Abbe Lowell, a prominent Washington lawyer, to lead her defence and vowed to fight the charges “aggressively.”
The indictment comes after media reports indicated that a top prosecutor previously found no probable cause to believe James had engaged in mortgage fraud.
Trump’s Legal Battles with James
Letitia James rose to national prominence through her aggressive pursuit of civil fraud charges against Trump’s business empire. Earlier this year, she secured a $500 million civil fraud judgment against Trump and his company after a New York judge found they had inflated assets for tax and insurance advantages.
Although an appeals court later wiped out the financial penalty in August, it upheld the case itself and left additional penalties in place. Both sides have appealed the ruling.
Indictment Comes Amid Pattern of Charges Against Trump Critics
James’s indictment follows that of former FBI Director James Comey, another Trump critic, who was charged two weeks earlier with two felony counts related to his 2020 congressional testimony. Comey pleaded not guilty in Alexandria, Virginia, and his trial is scheduled for January 2026, though his defence team plans to challenge the prosecution.
The developments mark a dramatic escalation in legal action involving several of Trump’s most prominent adversaries, raising concerns among legal analysts and political observers about the intersection of law and politics as the 2026 election season approaches.
