WASHINGTON (AP) — A grand jury has indicted New York Attorney General Letitia James on fraud charges in the latest Justice Department case against a person considered an enemy of President Donald Trump, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press on Thursday.
Mr. James was indicted in the Eastern District of Virginia on certain charges following a mortgage fraud investigation, said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
James’ office had no immediate comment Thursday.
Charged two weeks after another criminal complaint former FBI Director James Comey Lying to Congress is the latest sign of the Trump administration’s determination to break the norm of using the Justice Department’s law enforcement powers to: track the president’s political opponents and the public figures who once investigated him.
The James case remained sealed Thursday, making it impossible to assess what evidence prosecutors have. But as with Comey, prosecutors responded to a surprisingly unconventional case. Two weeks ago, the Trump administration fired veteran prosecutor Eric Siebert, who had overseen the investigation for months but had resisted pressure to file charges, and replaced him with Lindsey Harrigan, a former Trump personal lawyer who had never worked as a federal prosecutor, as White House aide.
Mr. Halligan submitted his own case to a grand jury, similar to the case against Mr. Comey, the people said.
Lindsey Harrigan outside the White House, August 20, 2025, Washington. (AP Photo/Jacqueline Martin, File)
President Trump has been pushing charges against James for months, posting on social media without providing evidence that she is “extremely guilty” and telling reporters at the White House: “It looks like she’s really guilty of something, but we just don’t know.”
James, a second-term Democrat, has denied any wrongdoing. She said she made a mistake while filling out forms related to the home purchase, but corrected it quickly and did not deceive the lender.
Her lawyer accused the Justice Department of fabricating a bogus criminal case last year to settle President Trump’s personal vendetta against James. won an astonishing verdict A lawsuit was filed against Trump and his companies, accusing him of lying to banks and others about the value of his assets.
The Justice Department is also investigating mortgage-related allegations against Federal Reserve Board member Lisa Cook and Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), whose lawyers said the allegations against them were “patently false, obsolete and long debunked.”
But James is a particularly personal target. As Attorney General, she sued the Republican president and his administration He has litigated dozens of cases accusing him of defrauding banks by grossly exaggerating the value of real estate holdings on financial statements.
court of appeals overturned the fineThe total amount, including interest, amounted to more than $500 million, but it upheld a lower court’s finding that Trump committed fraud.
