Newly uncovered mortgage records show that New York Attorney General Letitia James may have committed fraud in connection with a $200,000 credit line mortgage she signed with Citizens Bank in June 2021, as reported by The Gateway Pundit.
According to official documents, James misrepresented her Brooklyn property, located at 296 Lafayette Avenue, as a single-family residence despite the Certificate of Occupancy designating it as a five-unit dwelling.
The discrepancy lowered her loan costs and interest rate significantly by classifying the property as residential instead of commercial.
BREAKING: NY AG Letitia James’ accused in secondary MORTGAGE FRAUD SCAM on a $200,000 “Credit Line Mortgage” with Citizens Bank in 2021.https://t.co/48h1z7nTQc
— Jack Straw (@JackStr42679640) September 9, 2025
Under New York law, properties with one to four units qualify for residential mortgages with lower rates, while buildings with five or more units fall under commercial rules with higher closing costs.
The Certificate of Occupancy, which lists James’s property as a “FIVE (5) FAMILY DWELLING,” is the controlling legal authority for the unit count.
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Despite that, James’s June 21, 2021, Citizens Bank mortgage document described the property as “DWELLING ONLY — 1 FAMILY.” The 25-year agreement was signed directly by James.
Records show this was not the first time James listed the property incorrectly. Since purchasing it in 2001, she repeatedly refinanced using forms that identified the building as containing only four units.
As recently as August 2019, her mortgage papers still listed “four-family dwelling.”
By reducing the property classification, James avoided commercial mortgage requirements that could have added $20,000 to $30,000 in closing costs, including fees for appraisals, surveys, title insurance, origination, underwriting, and legal expenses.
The Citizens Bank mortgage document shows she paid only $4,070 in fees and taxes.
Legal analysts note that misrepresentations of this nature fall under New York Penal Law Article 187. Because the loan exceeded $50,000, the case could qualify as Mortgage Fraud in the Second Degree, a Class C felony carrying a sentence of up to 15 years in prison.
Since Citizens Bank is FDIC-insured, federal statutes may also apply. Under 18 U.S.C. § 1014, making false statements to a federally insured bank can carry a sentence of up to 30 years.
The statute of limitations runs 10 years, meaning James’s 2021 mortgage remains actionable until June 2031.
James has faced past scrutiny over financial dealings, including reports that she misrepresented her marital status to secure a loan in 1983 and claimed fewer dwelling units to obtain a government HAMP loan in 2011.
The revelations have drawn comparisons to James’s own legal arguments against President Donald Trump and the Trump Organization, where she emphasized that fraud is unlawful even if banks are repaid and suffer no losses.
In those proceedings, Justice Arthur Engoron agreed that misrepresentation itself was the basis for liability.
James’s past public statements have also resurfaced. Following Trump’s civil fraud conviction in February 2024, she declared:
“When powerful people cheat to get better loans, it comes at the expense of honest and hardworking people. Everyday Americans cannot lie to a bank to get a mortgage to buy a home, and if they did, our government would throw the book at them. There simply cannot be different rules for different people. Because no matter how big, rich, or powerful you think you are, no one is above the law.”
With this latest documentation, critics are calling for Special Prosecutor Ed Martin to open a case against James under both state and federal statutes.
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