WASHINGTON — The Department of Justice has launched an investigation into New York Attorney General Letitia James, focusing on real estate transactions, according to multiple news outlets.
The probe, led by the FBI, is reportedly connected to property purchases and loans in New York City and Virginia, as first reported on May 8 by the Albany Times Union, The Guardian, and The Washington Post.
James has been a frequent target of criticism by former President Donald Trump, particularly after securing a $454 million judgment against him in 2024 for inflating his assets to deceive lenders.
In an April criminal referral, William Pulte, the Trump-appointed director of the U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency, accused New York Attorney General Letitia James of falsifying bank documents and property records on multiple occasions to secure government-backed assistance loans and more favorable loan terms.
Pulte alleged that James may have misrepresented property details and falsely claimed Norfolk as her primary residence. He cited “media reports” as the primary basis for the referral.
On April 24, attorney Abbe Lowell sent a letter to the Department of Justice dismissing the allegations against Attorney General Letitia James as unfounded and politically motivated, citing former President Donald Trump’s long-standing animosity toward her.
“These baseless and long-discredited allegations, put to rest by my April 24th letter to the Department of Justice, are suddenly back in the news just days after President Trump publicly attacked Attorney General James,” Lowell said in a May 8 statement on James’s behalf. “This appears to be the political retribution President Trump threatened to exact—retribution that AG Bondi assured the Senate would not occur on her watch. If prosecutors are genuinely interested in the truth, we are prepared to meet false claims with facts.”
The Justice Department declined to comment.
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Attorney General James is currently engaged in litigation against the Trump administration over funding cuts to the Department of Health and Human Services, as well as executive actions related to elections, which she argues are unconstitutional.
When asked about the criminal referral during a May 6 appearance at the White House, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi declined to comment.
