A relative of New York Attorney General Letitia James is listed as an “absconder” from justice and is currently wanted by authorities in the state of North Carolina, according to an online report referencing state legal documents.
Nikia Monique Thompson, who is reportedly the daughter of James’ niece, appears to be living in one of James’ homes in Virginia.
James, who was already under investigation by federal housing authorities for mortgage fraud and has been referred to the Justice Department for criminal investigation for listing the Virginia home as her “primary residence,” now faces a potential dilemma of allowing her relative to continue hiding from North Carolina authorities or surrendering her to satisfy a warrant for her arrest.
According to reports, Thompson is wanted in North Carolina for probation violations. The “absconder” warrant is dated 2012, but there are no indications that it has expired.
Thompson’s criminal history stretches back two decades across Virginia and North Carolina, with convictions that include child abuse, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, possession of burglary tools, third-degree larceny, assault and battery, trespassing, shoplifting, resisting arrest, disorderly conduct, possession of marijuana, driving with a suspended license, and malicious conduct while incarcerated, reports said.
There is some question as to whether James can be held legally liable for allegedly harboring a fugitive from justice, according to a report this week.
The Justice Department’s Weaponization Working Group is ramping up investigations into James and Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), both for allegedly misrepresenting primary residences on loan applications to secure better interest rates.
The director of the group, Ed Martin, confirmed the probes last weekend in an interview with Fox News host Maria Bartiromo.
“Every American who has a mortgage has to follow the law,” Martin said. “If somebody did something wrong, we’re going to hold them accountable.”
In a letter sent August 12, Martin urged James to step down as New York AG, saying her resignation would be viewed as “an act of good faith.” He added that doing so would serve “the good of the state and nation” and would bring an end to the probe into her conduct.
“Her resignation from office would give the people of New York and America more peace than proceeding,” Martin wrote in the letter. “I would take this as an act of good faith.”
The investigation focuses on alleged discrepancies involving James’s Brooklyn townhouse and a property she owns in Virginia.
“James’ lawyer Abbe Lowell shot back on Monday, telling Martin in a letter his blunt request for James’ resignation defied Justice Department standards and codes of professional responsibility and legal ethics,” Yahoo reported.
The DOJ “has firm policies against using investigations and against using prosecutorial power for achieving political ends,” Lowell wrote. “This is ever more the case when that demand is made to seek political revenge against a public official in the opposite party.”
“Let me be clear: that will not happen here,” he stated firmly, regarding Martin’s offer to allow James to resign.
Earlier in the month, Martin appeared outside James’s Brooklyn townhouse, accompanied by an aide and a journalist from the New York Post. Martin, dressed in a trench coat, did not attempt to enter the property and did not engage directly with James.
The writer from the Post saw him engage in a conversation with a neighbor, saying, “I’m just looking at houses, interesting houses. It’s an important house.”
Grand juries in Virginia and Maryland are currently weighing criminal indictments for James and Schiff (D-Calif.).
The probe into James’ real estate began in April when Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte referred the case to the DOJ.