NY AG Letitia James slapped with summons for having illegal fence by Brooklyn brownstone at center of federal mortgage fraud probe
Embattled New York Attorney General Letitia James better mend fences — or pay up.
James is set to appear before an administrative law judge Oct. 8, where she faces up to $500 in fines for having a 5-foot, 6-inch high fence in front of her multi-family home in the Clinton Hill Historic District. The brownstone is the focus of a federal mortgage fraud investigation.
The city Buildings Department slapped the far-left pol with the summons July 23 after fielding at least three anonymous complaints since April which claimed the black iron fence exceeded the 4-foot height limit, records show.
New Yorkers are “tired of double standards,” and all public officials — including James — must follow the rules like any other New York City homeowner, said City Councilman Robert Holden.
“If the DOB summons and mortgage questions are accurate, Attorney General Letitia James should bring the fence into compliance, pay any penalties, and be fully transparent, because no one is above the law,” added the moderate Queens Democrat.
James can avoid fines if she removes the fence or lowers it to a legal height, by Sept. 26.
Residents on the tree-lined block nestled between St. James Place and Grand Avenue said they were unaware James was breaking any rules, including one woman who insisted James inherited the fence when she purchased the 120-year-old brownstone in 2001.
The longtime neighbor also pointed to at least one other home on the block with a high fence that hadn’t been ticketed.
The U.S. Department of Justice has been investigating allegations James committed mortgage fraud by falsifying records to receive favorable loan terms on the Clinton Hill property and another she co-owns in Virginia with a niece.
She’s slammed the fraud allegations as “baseless” and claimed they were a direct result of her long history of legal battles with President Trump.
James is also late paying an annual $13 property registration fee required by the Department of Housing Preservation and Development on the Brooklyn home, records show.
James did not return messages.
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