Sen Adam Schiff under federal criminal investigation for alleged mortgage fraud violations
Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., is under criminal investigation for mortgage fraud, a Trump administration source told Fox News.
Fox News host Laura Ingraham broke the news on Tuesday night on "The Ingraham Angle," saying the source said a criminal investigation is being conducted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Maryland on possible charges involving mortgage fraud.
The investigation comes a month after a story broke about the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) sending a criminal referral to the Department of Justice (DOJ) alleging that Schiff, in multiple instances, falsified bank documents and property records to acquire more favorable loan terms.
In a 2011 affidavit signed by the then California congressman, Schiff certified that a property in Montgomery County, Maryland, is his primary residence.
Schiff also owns a condominium in Burbank, California, which he has also claimed as his primary residence as recently as 2023, during his campaign for Senate.
Schiff's office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment on the matter.
The director of the UFHFA sent a letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi and Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche in May citing alleged misconduct by Schiff.
COULD SENATOR ADAM SCHIFF REALLY GO TO JAIL OVER ALLEGED MORTGAGE FRAUD?
"Based on media reports, Mr. Adam B. Schiff has, in multiple instances, falsified bank documents and property records to acquire more favorable loan terms, impacting payments from 2003-2019 for a Potomac, Maryland-based property," FHFA Director William Pulte wrote in the letter. "As regulator of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Home Loan Banks, we take very seriously allegations of mortgage fraud or other criminal activity. Such misconduct jeopardizes the safety and soundness of FHFA’s regulated entities and the security and stability of the U.S. mortgage market."
Pulte later received a memo from the Fannie Mae financial crimes investigations concluding that Schiff allegedly engaged in "a sustained pattern of possible occupancy misrepresentation" on five Fannie Mae loans, Fox News has learned.
Schiff and his wife purchased a home in Potomac, Maryland, in 2003 for $870,000, according to the letter. They entered into a Fannie Mae-backed mortgage agreement for $610,000 at a rate of 5.625% over a term of 30 years, asserting the property would be their primary and principal residence.
The letter said they reaffirmed that the Maryland home was their primary residence in mortgage refinancing filings in 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2013, despite Schiff being an elected official representing the state of California at the same time.
Fox News obtained a copy of the 2011 affidavit showing Schiff signed certifying that the Maryland house is his primary residence.
Pulte said Schiff and his wife did not list the Maryland home as their secondary residence until 2020.
Over the same time frame, Schiff took a homeowner’s tax exemption on a condo that he owns in Burbank, California, also claiming that home as his primary residence for a $7,000 reduction off of the 1% property tax, Pulte wrote, citing media reports.
In 2023, the letter notes, a spokesperson for Schiff asserted that, "Adam’s primary residence is Burbank, California, and will remain so when he wins the Senate seat."
The federal housing official wrote that he believes Schiff's alleged misconduct could be violations of federal criminal codes banning wire fraud, mail fraud, bank fraud and false statements to financial institutions.
Schiff "appears to have falsified records in order to receive favorable loan terms, and also appears to have been aware of the financial benefits of a primary residence mortgage when compared to a secondary residence mortgage," Pulte wrote.
According to the letter, a spokesperson for Schiff in 2023 told CNN that, "Adam’s California and Maryland addresses have been listed as primary residences for loan purposes because they are both occupied throughout the year and to distinguish them from a vacation property."
Last year, the letter notes, a federal jury convicted Marilyn Mosby of making false statements on a mortgage application for a Florida condominium when she was the Baltimore City state’s attorney.
Fox News Digital's Danielle Wallace contributed to this report.
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