Second Criminal Referral Filed Against Lisa Cook

A second criminal referral concerning Lisa Cook was submitted to the Justice Department on Thursday. This complaint came from Bill Prute, the Director of Federal Housing and Finance, who had previously made a referral regarding a chef’s dismissal “for cause” to President Trump.

Prute stated, “Three strikes and you’re out.” He indicated that the referral was linked to a mortgage on Cook’s third property, alleging that she misrepresented it during her time as a governor for the Federal Reserve. He even shared a letter addressed to Attorney General Pam Bondy.

In April 2021, Prute noted, Cook acquired a 15-year mortgage on a $361,000 property in a Cambridge, Massachusetts apartment complex, with the intention of it being a “second home.” However, just eight months later, she signed an ethics form disclosing the property as an “investment/rental property,” according to officials from the Trump administration.

Despite additional disclosures from 2022 to 2025, Cook continued to categorize her condos as rentalproperties rather than as “second homes.”

Prute pointed out that second homes often have lower mortgage costs compared to investment properties due to inherent risks associated with the latter. He expressed concern, suggesting that Cook could have benefited by failing to declare the property as an investment. He mentioned, “It seems likely that, among other issues, this property was misrepresented as a second home.”

Furthermore, Prute discovered that Cook listed her Atlanta properties as “personal residences” in government documents from the years 2022 to 2025. He also indicated that the Federal Housing Finance Agency has grounds to believe these properties were actually rental units.

Prute urged the DOJ to investigate how Cook maintains her position as a governor, claiming she potentially committed further criminal violations and made significant misrepresentations to both the US Senate and the government.

Cook’s attorney, Abbe Lowell, has yet to respond to requests for comments regarding this matter. Earlier this month, Prute, who has ties to past administrations, accused Cook of manipulating bank documents and property records to obtain favorable loan terms.

Notably, it was reported that Cook had labeled her Atlanta condos as her main residences as early as July 2021. This declaration came just weeks after she secured a loan for her Michigan residence.

In related news, President Trump announced on Monday that he had terminated a chef’s contract. In response, Cook filed a lawsuit against him on Thursday, alleging that Trump’s actions were unlawful, arguing that he had inadvertently misclassified one of her properties as her primary residence in a mortgage application four years ago.