A single-page mortgage form signed by New York Attorney General Letitia James has become the focal point of a federal criminal case that could send her to prison for up to 60 years.
The document in question — a “second home rider” attached to her mortgage and obtained by The Post — contains James’s written assurance that the property would serve as a secondary residence she would primarily occupy.
That statement, according to prosecutors, allowed James to lock in a more favorable loan rate from Old Virginia Mortgage/Annie Mac, ultimately saving her close to $19,000 in mortgage costs.
In reality, however, The New York Times reported that shortly after the deal closed, James’s grandniece, Nakia Thompson — who has a long criminal history — moved into the home and began living there.
Federal prosecutors allege that James’s actions amount to bank fraud and false statements to a financial institution. The strength of the case, they note, may depend on whether Thompson paid rent while residing there.
Thompson told a federal grand jury in June that she lived in the three-bedroom, one-bath house rent-free, according to the Times.
The mortgage rider, dated August 17, 2020, bears James’s signature and spells out detailed restrictions on how the property was to be used.
Among the clauses in the agreement was a promise that James would “occupy and use” the house as a second home and retain “exclusive control” over who could live there.
It further required that the property remain “primarily” for her personal use for at least one year following purchase.
The document explicitly barred any “shared ownership arrangement” that would require her to rent it out or grant a management firm — or anyone else — control over occupancy, reiterating that it would be used “primarily” for her own purposes.
Another clause stated that if she or anyone acting on her behalf provided “inaccurate information or statements” about the property’s use as a second home, she could be found in default on the $109,600 loan.
The government’s case appears to hinge on Thompson’s sworn claim that she did not pay rent.
According to the indictment, James submitted tax records showing she spent zero days at the house while reporting thousands of dollars in rental income, as well as deductions for property-related expenses.
Legal analysts noted that Thompson’s criminal background could complicate matters for James.
The 36-year-old grandniece is currently wanted in North Carolina, where she admitted to assaulting a police officer in 2011, and she has multiple prior convictions in Virginia for offenses including grand larceny and possession of burglary tools.
If the defense calls Thompson to testify, prosecutors are expected to highlight her criminal history to undermine her credibility, explained former federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani.
“It’ll be up to the judge in the case to decide whether to allow Thompson’s criminal history to be used to impeach her,” she said.
The charges, filed last week in the Eastern District of Virginia, accuse James of falsely certifying that the home “was not occupied or used by James as a secondary residence and was instead used as a rental investment property.”
Prosecutors say her misrepresentation helped her qualify for a 3% mortgage rate — a discount that, according to U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan, saved her $18,933 in interest and seller concessions.
James has publicly rejected the allegations, claiming they are politically motivated attacks orchestrated by the Trump administration.
Appearing at a rally for Democratic socialist mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani in Washington Heights on Monday, James struck a defiant tone.
“We see powerful voices trying to silence truth and punish dissent and weaponize justice for political gain,” she told the cheering crowd.
“We are witnessing the fraying of our democracy, the erosion of our system of government,” James declared, calling the moment “a defining moment in our history.”
{Matzav.com}
Fox News contributor Hugh Hewitt warns ‘thousands’ of non-uniformed individuals are ‘complicit’ in Hamas’ terrorist activities as President Donald Trump pushes forward with the second phase of the Gaza peace agreement.
WATCH:
President Donald Trump took aim at ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos on Tuesday during a meeting with Argentine President Javier Milei, mocking the host’s interview style and even his name.
“We’ll take a couple of questions from the news, and I’m sure they’ll be incredibly non-hostile, and friendly, like JD went through a very ‘friendly’ interview with George Slopadopoulos,” Trump quipped sarcastically, deliberately mispronouncing Stephanopoulos’ name for effect.
He then brought up the lawsuit he had against ABC, making light of the outcome. “He was nice enough to pay me $16 million the last time we came — he had to pay $16 million to me. Which is good. It was worth it. It was worth having somebody lie. If you get $16 million, that’s good.”
Turning to Vice President JD Vance’s recent appearance on the network, Trump sharply criticized how the exchange was handled. “JD had a very nasty person interviewing him, and we can’t let that happen. Just is inappropriate to cut off a highly respected vice president of the United States, mid-sentence. I guess it’s one way to win an argument. That was the only way he was gonna win the argument. It was pretty inappropriate, I wanna tell you that.”
Moments later, Trump told the reporters present that he would not be taking any questions from “ABC fake news.”
The exchange came days after Vance’s contentious interview with Stephanopoulos, during which the ABC anchor repeatedly pressed him about bribery allegations involving border czar Tom Homan. The back-and-forth ended abruptly when Stephanopoulos terminated the segment after a heated exchange.
Stephanopoulos challenged Vance multiple times, claiming that Homan “was recorded on an audiotape in September 2024, an FBI surveillance tape, accepting $50,000 in cash.”
Vance shot back, questioning the credibility of both the claim and the network. “I don’t know what tape you’re referring to, George. I saw media reports that Tom Homan accepted a bribe. There’s no evidence of that. And here’s why fewer and fewer people watch your program and why you’re losing credibility,” Vance said. “Because you’re talking for now, five minutes with the vice president of the United States about this story regarding Tom Homan, a story that I’ve read about, but I don’t even know the video that you’re talking about.”
When Vance urged the host to move to other subjects, Stephanopoulos refused and ended the interview altogether.
Afterward, Vance took to social media to mock the exchange, writing, “Peace in the Middle East? China threatening critical supply chains? Government shutdown? George S doesn’t care about that. He’s here to focus on the real story: a fake scandal involving Tom Homan.”
{Matzav.com}
Christiane Amanpour, CNN’s chief international anchor, apologized on Monday for remarks suggesting that Hamas had “probably” treated Israeli hostages better than “average Gazans.”
“I regret saying that they may have been treated better than many Gazans, because Hamas used these hostages as pawns and bargaining chips. It was insensitive and wrong,” Amanpour wrote on X.
The veteran anchor has a history of making controversial statements about Israel.
“From speaking to many former hostages and their families, like everyone, I’ve been horrified at what Hamas has subjected them to over two long years. They’ve told me their stories of barely being able to breathe in the tunnels, not being allowed to cry, being starved and made to dig their own graves—and, of course, today, some of the hostages are coming back in body bags,” added Amanpour.
HonestReporting, an organization that monitors and exposes anti-Israel bias in the media, criticized Amanpour for her remarks, in a post on X that drew thousands of reposts.
“Thanks to our exposure of her appalling commentary and your help sharing it online, Amanpour has issued an apology,” HonestReporting wrote. “This isn’t the first time she’s had to apologize for her anti-Israel bias. Shame on her for this latest atrocious example.”
In April 2023, Amanpour referred to the Palestinian terrorist attack in which Lucy Dee and her daughters Maia and Rina Dee were murdered by Palestinian gunmen as a “shootout,” during an interview with Palestinian authority Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh. Amanpour later apologized for this mischaracterization.
HonestReporting also criticized The New York Times on Monday for a photo caption that described the release of Palestinian prisoners—including 250 convicted terrorists—in exchange for Israelis held in Gaza as an “exchange of hostages.”
The text presents a narrative in which “Hamas terrorists and murderers are somehow equal to Israeli hostages held in Gaza. This is moral collapse printed in black and white,” HonestReporting wrote on X. JNS
{Matzav.com}
Health officials have confirmed that a resident of New York has tested positive for the mosquito-borne chikungunya virus, the first case of local transmission recorded in the United States since 2019.
According to the New York State Department of Health, the virus—currently spreading rapidly across parts of China and neighboring countries—was identified in an individual from Nassau County, located on Long Island.
Local health authorities reported that the person developed symptoms in August after traveling outside of the county but remaining within the United States.
While investigators are unsure exactly how the infection occurred, officials said it is most likely that the individual was bitten by a mosquito carrying the virus.
In late September, a 60-year-old woman from Nassau County who had not recently left her community tested positive for the virus during preliminary screening.
Officials have not yet confirmed whether this woman is the same individual mentioned in the earlier reports.
The Department of Health emphasized that chikungunya is rarely deadly and that most people recover completely within about a week.
However, the agency cautioned that certain populations—such as infants, the elderly, and individuals with preexisting medical conditions—face greater risks of severe illness.
Earlier this year, three other chikungunya cases were reported nationwide, though all of those infections were linked to travel in countries where the virus is already widespread, officials said.
At present, the virus has not been discovered in any mosquito populations within the region, and there is no indication of a larger outbreak, health authorities reassured the public.
Still, the species of mosquitoes capable of transmitting the virus—Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus—are known to exist in parts of Long Island and the greater New York City area.
These same mosquitoes can also spread other serious illnesses, including West Nile virus, Eastern equine encephalitis, and Jamestown Canyon virus.
Experts noted that chikungunya cannot be passed directly from one person to another. With colder weather reducing mosquito activity, “the current risk of transmission is very low,” said State Health Commissioner James McDonald.
Chikungunya, last found locally in 2019, is typically associated with tropical and subtropical climates. Symptoms often include fever, joint and muscle pain, headaches, swelling of the joints, and skin rashes, according to the state health department.
{Matzav.com}
