On Oct. 9, court documents revealed that New York Attorney General Letitia James had been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of bank fraud and making false statements about a property she owns.
The indictment came after FBI Director James Comey was indicted in the same district based in Alexandria, Virginia.
The move to charge James—who was involved in a civil prosecution of President Donald Trump in relation to his valuation of his assets in bank documents—drew mixed reactions, with many Democrats condemning the news.
James has declared her innocence of the allegations.
The Charges
In the indictment, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, prosecutors accused James of criminal errors in a 2020 mortgage application.The charges relate to a property that James purchased in Norfolk, Virginia, in August 2020. In the application for a loan through Old Virginia Mortgage, which is backed by the federally-linked institution Fannie Mae, James affirmed that she would use the home personally and not rent it out.
Prosecutors allege that she later rented the home out to a family of three. They say that this misrepresentation enabled James to obtain better loan terms than she would have been able to obtain on a rental property.
Both charges approved by the grand jury relate to this rental application.
The first charge is for bank fraud under 18 U.S. Code, Section 1344, and relates to the Old Virginia Mortgage component of the application.
The other charge, false statements to a financial institution under 18 U.S. Code, Section 1014, relates to the Fannie Mae component of the application.
If convicted, she could lose the property.
James Denies Wrongdoing
James has denied wrongdoing in the case.Her office did not respond to a request for comment.
“We will fight these baseless charges aggressively, and my office will continue to fiercely protect New Yorkers and their rights,” she said.
Political Reactions
Trump has not weighed in on the charges.However, since taking office, Trump has on several occasions said that James should be charged by the Justice Department.
In September, the president posted on Truth Social that Attorney General Pam Bondi should look into cases against former FBI Director James Comey, Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), and James, describing them as “guilty as hell” while lamenting that “nothing is going to be done.”
Trump also told reporters at the White House earlier this year that from his perspective, “it looks ... like she’s really guilty of something.”
Top Republicans such as Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) also have not responded.
However, Democrats expressed alarm over the charges, particularly in the wake of Comey’s indictment and arraignment on Oct. 8.
“[Trump has] turned the Justice Department into his personal attack dog to go after political enemies. This is tyranny. This is outrageous. Every American should be horrified—absolutely horrified—about what has happened.”
“This is political weaponization of our courts, plain and simple—and proof that when you stand up to corruption, they come for you,” Crockett said.
In the years before Trump took office, James brought a civil case against the Trump Organization that accused his real estate business of artificially inflating its assets to secure more favorable bank loans.
