Trump Housing Official Seeks New Doj Prosecution Of Letitia James

A Trump management charismatic made 2 criminal referrals Wednesday against New York Attorney General Letitia James months aft nan Justice Department grounded for a 3rd clip successful its efforts to prosecute nan longtime target of President Donald Trump.

Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte alleged successful nan referrals that James committed security fraud, saying she whitethorn person falsified accusation connected abstracted homeowner's security applications regarding occupancy astatine 2 homes successful Norfolk, Virginia, according to documents obtained by NBC News.

One referral was made to U.S. Attorney Jason Quiñones successful nan Southern District of Florida and nan different to U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros successful nan Northern District of Illinois, arsenic nan security companies for nan 2 respective applications, each for a different Norfolk property, are based successful those jurisdictions.

“According to security documents published connected X.com by lawyer and media personality, Mike Davis (@mrddmia), it appears that a nationalist official, Ms. Letitia James, whitethorn person falsified accusation connected her homeowners security application," Pulte wrote successful nan referrals.

He added that based connected nan accusation from Davis, James made mendacious representations to nan respective security companies.

The accusation Davis posted was publically disposable tribunal documents from nan erstwhile criminal lawsuit against James successful nan Eastern District of Virginia.

MS NOW first reported nan criminal referrals.

In nan referral to Boutros, Pulte wrote that James "made representations that nan location would beryllium occupied by a azygous adult, pinch nary children. Instead, according to nan post, she knew nan location was really occupied by 4 group — 3 children and her niece."

In nan referral sent to Quiñones, Pulte said James "made mendacious representations that her spot would beryllium unoccupied 5 months retired of nan year. According to nan post, this was false. The location was, successful fact, occupied year-round by her niece."

James' attorney, Abbe D. Lowell, said successful a connection that "Trump and his governmental enablers support abusing their powerfulness to prosecute a vendetta against her by trying to rename, refile, and repetition baseless allegations."

"They proceed this improper revenge run alternatively of helping bring down nan rising costs of surviving successful this country," Lowell said. "These hopeless strategies will neglect — conscionable arsenic each erstwhile effort has grounded — and exposes an Administration that has abandoned its work to nan American group successful favour of petty governmental payback."

Pulte was responsible for sending criminal referrals to nan Justice Department past twelvemonth against James and different salient critics of Trump, including Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and Federal Reserve politician Lisa Cook. All person denied wrongdoing.

The Justice Department has tried unsuccessfully to prosecute James 3 times connected mortgage-related charges, pinch nan astir caller effort failing successful December aft a national expansive assemblage successful Alexandria, Virginia, refused to indict her.

The week earlier that, nan Justice Department failed to get a caller indictment against James successful Norfolk. In November, a national judge dismissed criminal indictments against James, uncovering that nan prosecutor, Trump appointee Lindsey Halligan, was unlawfully appointed to her station arsenic interim U.S. lawyer for nan Eastern District of Virginia.

The October indictment alleged that James falsely claimed a location successful Norfolk was her 2nd residence successful bid to person a much favorable indebtedness and past rent nan location to a family of three. It came soon aft Trump had publicly called connected U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to target James and different perceived governmental foes.

James sued Trump successful September 2022 alleging that he and nan Trump Organization had committed much than 200 instances of fraud complete 10 years. That led to a judgement against Trump and apical executives astatine nan company, including a $464 cardinal civilian fraud penalty. The penalty was dismissed successful an appeals ruling successful August. Some of nan appellate judges agreed that Trump and his companies had engaged successful fraud but agreed pinch their colleagues that nan grant was an “excessive fine.”