N.Y. AG Letitia James to be arraigned in federal bank fraud case

New York Attorney General Letitia James, a longtime political foe of President Donald Trump who previously sued him for making misleading statements to banks, pleaded not guilty Friday in federal court to bank fraud charges.

A grand jury in Virginia indicted James, a Democrat, this month, weeks after Trump posted a message on Truth Social pressing Attorney General Pam Bondi to take action against her and two other political adversaries.

James was charged with one count of bank fraud and one count of making false statements to a financial institution. The indictment alleges she falsely claimed that a home in Norfolk, Virginia, was her second residence, allowing her to obtain favorable loan terms, and that she rented the property to a family of three.

The indictment indicates she is alleged to have saved about $50 a month.

After she was charged, James called the allegations “baseless” and said Trump’s “own public statements make clear that his only goal is political retribution at any cost.”

James’ office brought a civil fraud suit against Trump and his company in 2022. It alleged they were submitting misleading financial statements to banks and insurers, exaggerating his net worth by billions of dollars and enabling Trump and his company to obtain bank loans and insurance policies at rates they were not entitled to. As a result, James’ office has said, he “reaped hundreds of millions of dollars in ill-gotten gains.”

Trump was found liable for fraud and hit with a $464 million judgment last year. A divided state appeals court upheld the fraud finding in August but tossed out the financial penalty, finding it was “excessive.” Trump has denied wrongdoing in the case and is appealing the fraud finding.

James is the third prominent Trump critic to be arraigned on federal criminal charges in the past three weeks.

John Bolton, Trump’s former national security adviser, was arraigned last week, while former FBI Director James Comey was arraigned the week before that. Both pleaded not guilty.

James and Comey were indicted after Trump’s former personal lawyer Lindsey Halligan was named acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia.

Her predecessor, Erik S. Siebert, resigned under pressure last month after Trump said he wanted him “out.” NBC News previously reported that both the Comey and the James investigations were stalled during Siebert’s tenure because federal agents and prosecutors did not believe they had the evidence to secure convictions.

Comey has challenged the legality of Halligan’s appointment, something James’ attorneys said in a court filing Thursday that they plan to do, as well.

Halligan was sworn in days after Trump’s social media post urging Bondi to take action against James, Comey and Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.

Schiff is being investigated in Maryland over allegations of mortgage fraud, and he has denied any wrongdoing. NBC News, citing four people familiar with the investigation, reported Thursday that the investigation has stalled, with prosecutors believing they do not have enough evidence to bring charges.