By Katelynn Richardson
A federal grand jury indicted Letitia James on Thursday on allegations of bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution.
The two-count indictment was obtained by Interim U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Lindsey Halligan.
“This is nothing more than a continuation of the president’s desperate weaponization of our justice system,” James said in a video responding to the indictment. “He is forcing federal law enforcement agencies to do his bidding all because I did by job as the New York state attorney general. These charges are baseless.”
President Donald Trump appointed Halligan in September after Erik Siebert, under pressure from Trump to bring charges, resigned.
This is nothing more than a continuation of the president’s desperate weaponization of our justice system.
I am not fearful — I am fearless.
We will fight these baseless charges aggressively, and my office will continue to fiercely protect New Yorkers and their rights. pic.twitter.com/X9U0EsHuGM
— NY AG James (@NewYorkStateAG) October 9, 2025
Former FBI Director James Comey was indicted two weeks ago in the same district. He pleaded not guilty to two charges of allegedly making a false statement to Congress and obstruction of a Congressional proceeding on Wednesday.
The case was assigned to Judge Jamar Walker, a Biden appointee, according to the docket.
“One tier of justice for all Americans,” Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote on X.
The indictment relates to a $109,600 loan James secured on Aug 17, 2020 for a three bedroom home in Norfolk, Virginia. The loan required James “to occupy and use the property as her secondary residence, and prohibited its use as a timesharing or other shared ownership arrangement or agreement that requires her either to rent the property or give any other person any control over the occupancy or use of the property,” according to the indictment.
“Despite these representations, the Peronne Property was not occupied or used by JAMES as a secondary residence and was instead used as a rental investment property, renting the property to a family of (3),” the indictment states.
The misrepresentation allowed James to “obtain favorable loan terms not available for
investment properties” resulting in ” ill-gotten gains of approximately $18,933 over the life of the loan,” according to the indictment.
The Federal Housing Agency (FHFA) referred James in April to the Department of Justice (DOJ) for allegedly falsifying mortgage documents. (RELATED: Letitia James Referred To DOJ For Potential Mortgage Fraud)
FHFA Director William Pulte claimed she falsified records to secure a more favorable mortgage rate on a Virginia home in 2023, describing the property as her “primary residence” on a mortgage application. James is required to maintain primary residence in New York as the state’s attorney general.
James brought a civil fraud lawsuit against Trump in 2022 claiming he inflated his net worth to secure better loan terms. A New York appeals court tossed a nearly half-billion-dollar civil fraud penalty she secured against Trump in August, finding it “excessive.”
James’ office, her attorney and the Department of Justice (DOJ) did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
