An experienced federal prosecutor in Virginia has advised her colleagues that she finds no basis there is sufficient evidence to pursue criminal mortgage fraud charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James, as reported by a source acquainted with the situation.
The prosecutor, Elizabeth Yusi, who supervises major criminal cases in the Norfolk office for the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, will imminently present her finding to Lindsey Halligan, a Trump ally who was placed as the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia recently.
The Justice Department offered no statement on the matter. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia also did not return a request for comment.
High-Profile Confrontation Between Justice Department and Former President
This case represents another notable confrontation between the Justice Department and Trump, who has earlier dismissed attorneys who refused to take action against his critics. Halligan, who has no prosecutorial experience, was appointed to the role following pressure from Trump after her predecessor concluded there was insufficient evidence to file criminal charges against James Comey, the ex- FBI director.
Trump has publicly urged the U.S. Attorney General to charge James, who led a civil fraud case against the former president that resulted in a half-billion dollar fine, though the decision was subsequently thrown out by a New York state appellate court.
Mortgage Fraud Allegations and Investigation
William Pulte, the Federal Housing Finance Agency head and a staunch Trump ally, made a allegation against James to the Justice Department in April, alleging she may have committed mortgage fraud. Pulte pointed to mortgage documents associated with a 2023 Norfolk, Virginia, home that James assisted in buying for her niece, in which James suggested on a document that she planned to occupy the home as her principal dwelling. James was holding the position of the Attorney General of New York at the time.
Prosecutors assembled a grand jury in May to look into the matter but struggled building a case against James, notwithstanding urging from Trump allies. Electronic correspondence from the time of the home purchase and further mortgage documents reveal James directly noting that she did not intend for the home to be her primary residence. This evidence makes it difficult for prosecutors to prove that James intentionally misled on the mortgage documents.
Recent Changes in Prosecutorial Office
Multiple prosecutors in the Eastern District of Virginia have faced termination or left their posts in recent weeks as Trump has ramped up pressure on the office to bring charges against Comey and James.
Erik Siebert, Halligan’s predecessor, left his position on September 19 after facing pressure from Trump to file charges. Maya Song, a key deputy to Siebert, was also fired in late September. Michael Ben’Ary, a prominent national security prosecutor in the office, was also fired last week after unfounded accusations from a pro-Trump media personality.
“The leadership is more concerned with penalizing the President’s perceived enemies than they are with defending our national security,” he stated in his farewell letter to colleagues.
“Justice for Americans killed and injured by our enemies should not be contingent on what someone in the Department of Justice reads in their online content that day.”