Federal prosecutors in Albany issued summons to the New York Attorney General, Letitia James, asking about the case of civil fraud of his office against President Donald Trump and the case of corruption against the National Rifle Association, multiple sources told ABC News.
The Department of Justice declined to comment.
A James spokesman called for a “weapon of the justice system”, invoking a criticism that Trump used to describe his case against him that resulted in a penalty of half billion dollars.
“Any weapon of the justice system should disturb all Americans. We are strongly behind our successful litigation against the Trump organization and the National Rifles Association, and we will continue defending the rights of New Yorkers,” said the spokesman in a statement.
The case of civil fraud is in appeal of the First Department of the Appeals Division of the State of New York. Trump, his eldest children and his business were considered 10 years of fraud that inflated the president’s net worth.
The New York Attorney General, Letitia James, speaks during a press conference outside the Federal Court of Manhattan in New York on February 14, 2025.
Yuki Iwamura/AP, file
James sued the NRA in 2020, accusing the former CEO of the weapon rights group, Wayne Lapierre, and others to appropriate the donor funds to finance luxury items for themselves. The jury determined that Lapierre owed more than $ 4 million.
The citations, from the United States Prosecutor’s Office for the Northern District of New York, are part of an investigation into whether James and his office violated Trump’s civil rights or NRA executives, sources said.
A lawyer from James, Abbe Lowell, described the investigation “a dangerous escalation” and “the most flagrant and desperate example of this administration carried out by the president’s political remuneration campaign.”
“If the prosecutors carry out this inadequate tactic and are really interested in the truth, we are ready and waiting with the facts and the law,” Lowell said in a statement.
This is a development story. Consult the updates again.
