Letitia James to be arraigned in Virginia on federal mortgage fraud charges

New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) is scheduled to appear Friday morning in a Virginia federal courtroom for her arraignment on mortgage fraud charges.

James, 67, will be arraigned at 11 a.m. EST at the Walter E. Hoffman U.S. Courthouse in Norfolk, where she will enter a plea to a two-count indictment accusing her of bank fraud and making false statements to a financial institution. She is expected to plead not guilty.

A federal grand jury indicted James on Oct. 9, alleging that she falsely claimed she would personally occupy a Norfolk home she purchased in August 2020 with a $109,600 mortgage loan. Prosecutors contend the property was instead used as a rental investment home occupied by her grandniece’s family, including a relative currently wanted on outstanding warrants in North Carolina.