A Trump administration-aligned legal watchdog group is demanding a state probe into bombshell accusations of mortgage fraud recently leveled at New York Attorney General Letitia James.
America First Legal (AFL) filed a complaint against James with the New York State Unified Court System’s Committee on Professional Standards, which oversees disciplinary matters for lawyers licensed in the state.
The group’s five-page missive rehashes allegations detailed in a letter seeking a federal criminal probe into James that was sent by Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) Director William Pulte to the Justice Department earlier this month.
Pulte said James appeared to have “falsified records” to obtain favorable home loans for a Virginia property and a Brooklyn apartment she owns.
“If Ms. James has engaged in fraud by deceiving her lenders and the government to obtain financial benefits she would otherwise not be entitled to, then she has engaged in professional misconduct and violated her obligations as a lawyer and is subject to discipline by the New York Bar,” AFL’s April 24 letter reads.
“As the chief legal officer for the State of New York, Ms. James ought to aspire to the highest ethical standards. Instead, it appears she has repeatedly traded in her integrity for a monetary benefit through deceiving lenders and the public in pursuit of personal enrichment.”
Among Pulte’s accusations was that James claimed the Virginia home — which she purchased with her niece Shamice Thompson in 2023 after securing a $219,780 mortgage — as her “principal residence” while serving as New York’s top cop. The state AG must live in New York while in office.
That document cited power-of-attorney papers from 2023 signed by the AG authorizing the purchase of the property in which she attested, “I hereby declare I intend to occupy this property as my principal residence.”
But her lawyer, Abbe David Lowell, said the situation amounted to nothing more than a clerical error and accused Pulte of selectively including it to beef up his accusations.
Lowell said in a blistering letter to US Attorney General Pam Bondi last week that the accusations were nothing more than a meritless assault in Trump’s “revenge tour” against the prosecutor.
James has been in Trump’s crosshairs after she spearheaded a civil fraud case against him and his Trump organization last year, culminating in a $454 million judgment.
“Director Pulte cherry-picked an August 17, 2023 power of attorney that mistakenly stated the property to be Ms. James’ principal residence and at the same time absolutely ignored her very clear and all caps statement two weeks earlier to the mortgage loan broker that ‘[t]his property WILL NOT be my primary residence,’” Lowell’s letter said of the accusation.
Lowell also punched holes in Pulte’s allegations about her Brooklyn residence — which James has owned since 2001.
“Director Pulte points to a 24-year-old certificate of occupancy listing the property as having five units, despite that the property has functioned as a four-unit residence for the past 24 years since Ms. James bought it,” Lowell wrote.
“In fact, a document he is well aware of, the August 23, 2011 Home Affordable Modification Program application, confirms it as being a four-unit property.”
Lowell’s letter contended the accusations were simply part of Trump’s promised “retribution” against his political enemies.
Lowell was retained by the attorney general’s office rather than James in her personal capacity, according to a Times Union report, which means New York taxpayers will eventually foot the bill for his services.
The outlet reported James’ office said that decision was based on its contention that the motivation behind the criminal referral is due to a vendetta Trump holds against the attorney general for bringing the civil case against him last year.
A New York State Unified Court System rep did not respond to The Post’s request for comment Monday.
A spokesman for AG James referred The Post to Lowell’s letter to Bondi and did not provide further comment.
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