The Department of Justice has officially opened an investigation into Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) over alleged mortgage fraud, the latest Democratic lawmaker to be caught in a serious mortgage fraud scandal this year.
Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Bill Pulte sent a criminal referral to Attorney General Pam Bondi on Wednesday.
Pulte alleged in a letter that Swalwell may have made false or misleading statements on loan documents related to a Washington, D.C., home. The referral claims Swalwell obtained several million dollars in loans and refinancing by declaring his primary residence as Washington, D.C.
The investigation will examine the alleged mortgage fraud, state and local tax fraud, and insurance fraud.
Swalwell becomes the fourth prominent Democrat referred to the Justice Department on mortgage fraud allegations by Pulte. New York Attorney General Letitia James, California Senator Adam Schiff, and Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook have also been investigated for fraud. All have denied wrongdoing.
James was indicted last month on fraud charges. Schiff is under federal investigation. Attorney General Bondi has appointed a special attorney to probe the allegations against Schiff and James.
“As the most vocal critic of Donald Trump over the last decade and as the only person who still has a surviving lawsuit against him, the only thing I am surprised about is that it took him this long to come after me,” Swalwell said in a statement Thursday.
“Like James Comey and John Bolton, Adam Schiff and Lisa Cook, Letitia James and the dozens more to come – I refuse to live in fear in what was once the freest country in the world,” Swalwell said. “Of course, I will not end my lawsuit against him. And I will not stop speaking out against the President and speaking up for Californians.”
Swalwell has served as one of Trump’s most vocal Democratic critics in Congress. He served as an impeachment manager during Trump’s second impeachment proceedings and was among the earliest Democrats to call for investigation into false allegations of Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election.
Trump and his allies have countered Swalwell’s criticism allegations he had a romantic affair with a suspected Chinese spy and has been compromised by a foreign intelligence agency. Swalwell was previously investigated by the House Ethics Committee over his suspected ties to a Chinese intelligence operation.