DOJ Indicts New York AG Letitia James on Bank Fraud Charges After Trump Pressure Campaign

On October 9, 2025, a federal grand jury in the Eastern District of Virginia indicted New York Attorney General Letitia James on charges of bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution. The indictment alleges that James misrepresented a Norfolk, Virginia home she purchased in 2020 as her second residence to obtain favorable mortgage terms, allowing her to save approximately $17,837 over the life of the loan—roughly $594 per year in interest. The charges stem from allegations that James falsely claimed the property as a second home while renting it to a family of three.

The indictment came after months of sustained public pressure from President Trump demanding that the Justice Department prosecute James, one of his most prominent political opponents. James, a Democrat who campaigned on investigating Trump, successfully sued Trump and his company for inflating property values, winning more than $450 million in a civil business fraud case that was later significantly reduced on appeal. Trump repeatedly called for James’s prosecution on social media and in public statements, explicitly directing Attorney General Pam Bondi to bring charges. Reporting revealed that career federal prosecutors in the Eastern District of Virginia concluded that criminal charges were not warranted, but political appointees overruled them to secure the indictment.

James pleaded not guilty at her October 24, 2025 arraignment, with her attorney Abbe Lowell stating they are “deeply concerned that this case is driven by President Trump’s desire for revenge.” Legal experts and former DOJ officials condemned the prosecution as a blatant example of weaponized law enforcement, noting the extraordinary disparity between the alleged financial benefit ($594 annually) and the deployment of federal criminal resources typically reserved for serious fraud cases involving substantial losses. The indictment represents one of the most egregious examples of the Trump administration using the Justice Department to prosecute political opponents, with trial scheduled for January 26, 2026.