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A veteran federal prosecutor in Virginia has informed 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 knowledgeable about the situation.

The prosecutor, Elizabeth Yusi, who supervises significant prosecutions in the Norfolk office for the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, plans to shortly present her finding to Lindsey Halligan, a ally of the former president who was appointed as the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia in the previous month.

The Justice Department declined to comment on the matter. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia also did not return a request for comment.

High-Profile Dispute Between Department of Justice and Trump

This case represents another high-profile confrontation between the Justice Department and Trump, who has previously removed attorneys who resisted to take action against his critics. Halligan, who has no prosecutorial experience, was named to the role following pressure from Trump after her predecessor concluded there was insufficient evidence to file criminal charges against James Comey, the former FBI director.

Trump has publicly called for the U.S. Attorney General to take legal action against James, who headed a civil fraud case against the president that resulted in a half-billion dollar fine, though the judgment was afterwards thrown out by a New York state appellate court.

Mortgage Fraud Allegations and Probe

William Pulte, the Federal Housing Finance Agency head and a strong Trump ally, made a allegation against James to the Justice Department in April, alleging she may have committed mortgage fraud. Pulte cited mortgage documents pertaining to a 2023 Norfolk, Virginia, home that James supported the acquisition of for her niece, in which James suggested on a document that she intended to use the home as her main home. James was serving as the Attorney General of New York at the time.

Prosecutors formed a grand jury in May to look into the matter but faced difficulties building a case against James, despite demands from Trump allies. Messages from the time of the home purchase and additional mortgage documents reveal James directly noting that she did not intend for the home to be her primary residence. This evidence complicates efforts for prosecutors to prove that James deliberately falsified on the mortgage documents.

Ongoing Shake-Up in Prosecutorial Unit

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

Erik Siebert, Halligan’s predecessor, resigned on September 19 after encountering pressure from Trump to file charges. Maya Song, a top deputy to Siebert, was also terminated in late September. Michael Ben’Ary, a top national security prosecutor in the office, was similarly dismissed last week after false accusations from a pro-Trump media personality.

“The leadership is preoccupied with targeting the President’s perceived enemies than they are with safeguarding our national security,” he stated in his final message to colleagues.

“Justice for Americans killed and injured by our enemies should not be contingent on what someone in the Department of Justice sees in their social media feed that day.”