Latest: Justice Department Kicks Off Criminal Probe Against NY Attorney General
Investigation Initiated: Criminal Probe by U.S. Justice Department Against New York's District Attorney General - Investigation Launched: U.S. Justice Department Initiates Criminal Probe against New York's Chief Legal Officer
Here's the lowdown on this juicy tale:
The probe got underway following suspicions of dodgy mortgage shenanigans, raised by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), and passed onto the Justice Department in April. The attorney general, Letitia James, is claimed to have manipulated records to score better loan deals for properties in New York and Virginia, as per the FHFA's letter, partially made public by U.S. news outlets. U.S. Attorney General, Pam Bondi, confirmed that her team would take a close look at the accusations.
Flashback to 2024—in a civil lawsuit filed by James—Donald Trump was found guilty of padding the worth of his real estate kingdom to bag favorable loan terms from banks and insurers for years. Trump and his grown-up pals were slapped with a whopping $454 million (roughly €400 million) penalty.
Trump, ever the drama king, has dismissed numerous legal run-ins over the years as politically motivated witch hunts, portraying himself as a martyr. Throughout his campaign, he's threatened retaliation against political adversaries.
- Investigation
- Donald Trump
- Letitia James
- Justice Department
- Alleged mortgage fraud
- U.S. President
- U.S. Department of Justice
- Civil lawsuit
- New York
- U.S. media
- U.S.-style justice
- Albany
- FBI
(Enrichment Insights: The inquiry is being spearheaded by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), with the Albany FBI field office and the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of New York participating. The case unfolded when William Pulte, Director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), wrote to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, accusing James of faking bank documents and property records for decades to secure favorable loans. Critics like Congresswoman Elise Stefanik question the legitimacy of James' actions given her earlier legal battles with Donald Trump.)
- The FBI, involved in the investigation of the alleged mortgage fraud case, is cooperating with the United States Attorney for the Northern District of New York and the Albany FBI field office.
- Letitia James, the New York Attorney General, is under scrutiny for allegedly falsifying bank documents and property records for decades to secure favorable loans, as per a report in U.S. media outlets.
- The Justice Department has kicked off a criminal probe against Letitia James, following suspicions of dodgy mortgage shenanigans raised by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA).
- Donald Trump, who has previously dismissed legal run-ins as politically motivated witch hunts, may be an interesting perspective to this new investigation, given his past civil lawsuit with Letitia James where he was found guilty of padding the worth of his real estate kingdom.
