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A veteran federal prosecutor in Virginia has told her colleagues that she does not believe there is probable cause to pursue criminal mortgage fraud charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James, according to a source familiar with the situation.

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

The Justice Department did not respond 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 Justice Department and Former President

This case marks another high-profile confrontation between the Justice Department and Trump, who has earlier removed attorneys who resisted to target his critics. Halligan, who lacks any prosecutorial experience, was appointed to the role following pressure from Trump after her preceding attorney concluded there was no legal basis to file criminal charges against James Comey, the previous FBI director.

Trump has openly called for the U.S. Attorney General to prosecute James, who spearheaded a civil fraud case against the ex-president that resulted in a massive fine, though the ruling was later thrown out by a New York state appellate court.

Loan Fraud Claims and Investigation

William Pulte, the Federal Housing Finance Agency head and a staunch Trump ally, made a allegation against James to the Justice Department in April, alleging she may have committed mortgage fraud. Pulte cited mortgage documents related to a 2023 Norfolk, Virginia, home that James helped purchase for her niece, in which James suggested on a document that she planned to occupy the home as her main home. James was holding the position of 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, notwithstanding pressure from Trump allies. Electronic correspondence from the time of the home purchase and other mortgage documents reveal James directly noting that she did not intend for the home to be her primary residence. This evidence poses a challenge for prosecutors to prove that James intentionally misled on the mortgage documents.

Recent Turnover in Justice Unit

Multiple prosecutors in the Eastern District of Virginia have been dismissed or stepped down in recent weeks as Trump has escalated 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 prominent national security prosecutor in the office, was also fired last week after unfounded accusations from a pro-Trump media personality.

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

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