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A federal grand jury has returned a criminal indictment against New York Attorney General Letitia James, charging her with violations of federal banking laws. The indictment, filed in the Eastern District of Virginia in Alexandria, alleges that James committed bank fraud and made false statements to a financial institution in connection with a mortgage loan application for a residence in Norfolk, Virginia, according to court documents. James previously led a high-profile civil fraud investigation against Donald Trump.
In a statement, James accused the president - who recently publicly pressured prosecutors to file criminal charges against her - of a "desperate weaponization of our justice system".
"He is forcing federal law enforcement agencies to do his bidding, all because I did my job as the New York State attorney general," she said.
The US prosecutor assigned to the case, Lindsey Halligan, meanwhile, said the case proved that "no one is above the law".
"The charges as alleged in this case represent intentional, criminal acts and tremendous breaches of the public's trust," she said.
Trump appointed Halligan, his former personal attorney, to oversee the case after another US prosecutor, Erik Siebert, resigned. Siebert was reportedly ousted after he told the justice department he had not found sufficient evidence to charge James.
The federal government alleges James bought a three-bedroom home in Norfolk using a mortgage loan that required her to use the property as her secondary residence and did not allow for shared ownership or "timesharing" of the home.
The indictment claims the property "was not occupied or used" by James as a secondary residence, but was instead "used as a rental investment property", which was being rented to a family of three.
The "misrepresentation" allowed James to obtain favourable loan terms that would not have been available for an investment property, prosecutors claim.
Halligan said that, if convicted, James could face up to 30 years in prison per count and up to a $1 million (£751,755) fine on each count.
James's attorney, Abbe Lowell, said: "We are deeply concerned that this case is driven by President Trump's desire for revenge."
Trump last month called on US Attorney General Pam Bondi, who leads the justice department, in a social media post to prosecute his political opponents, including James.
James was one of several Trump adversaries named in that post.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, said James's indictment "is nothing less than the weaponization of the Justice Department to punish those who hold the powerful accountable."
James' first court appearance is scheduled for 24 October in Norfolk.
