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A senior federal prosecutor in Virginia has advised her colleagues that she finds no basis there is probable cause to pursue criminal mortgage fraud charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James, as reported by a source familiar with the situation.

The prosecutor, Elizabeth Yusi, who supervises major criminal cases in the Norfolk office for the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, plans to soon present her conclusion to Lindsey Halligan, a ally of the former president who was appointed as the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia last month.

The Justice Department offered no statement on the matter. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia also ignored a request for comment.

Major Confrontation Between Justice Department and Former President

This case represents another notable confrontation between the Justice Department and Trump, who has in the past dismissed attorneys who resisted to take action against his political enemies. Halligan, who possesses no prosecutorial experience, was named to the role following pressure from Trump after her predecessor concluded there was no probable cause to file criminal charges against James Comey, the ex- FBI director.

Trump has publicly called for the U.S. Attorney General to charge James, who spearheaded a civil fraud case against the president that resulted in a half-billion dollar fine, though the ruling was subsequently thrown out by a New York state appellate court.

Mortgage Fraud Claims and Probe

William Pulte, the Federal Housing Finance Agency head and a dedicated Trump ally, made a legal complaint against James to the Justice Department in April, asserting she may have committed mortgage fraud. Pulte referenced mortgage documents pertaining to a 2023 Norfolk, Virginia, home that James assisted in buying for her niece, in which James seemed to state on a document that she planned to occupy the home as her primary residence. James was holding the position of the Attorney General of New York at the time.

Prosecutors convened a grand jury in May to investigate the matter but faced difficulties building a case against James, despite pressure from Trump allies. Messages from the time of the home purchase and further mortgage documents show James directly noting that she did not mean for the home to be her primary residence. This evidence poses a challenge for prosecutors to prove that James knowingly lied on the mortgage documents.

Ongoing Changes in Legal Division

Multiple prosecutors in the Eastern District of Virginia have been dismissed or left their posts in recent weeks as Trump has escalated pressure on the office to bring charges against Comey and James.

Erik Siebert, Halligan’s predecessor, stepped down on September 19 after experiencing pressure from Trump to file charges. Maya Song, a senior deputy to Siebert, was also dismissed in late September. Michael Ben’Ary, a prominent national security prosecutor in the office, was removed last week after unfounded accusations from a pro-Trump media personality.

“The leadership is focused with punishing the President’s perceived enemies than they are with protecting our national security,” he wrote in his final message to colleagues.

“Justice for Americans harmed by our enemies should not be dependent on what someone in the Department of Justice reads in their online content that day.”