Every major development in the Letitia James case broke through one reporter. Every leak of non-public information helped the defense.
Yesterday, I published “96 Minutes: The Letitia James Grand Jury Leaks Were Worse Than Reported.” I documented how two grand juries – one that chose secrecy, one that chose transparency – both had their decisions leaked to the same ABC News reporter before they could speak.
Today I’m documenting the full pattern. It’s not two leaks. It’s six.
Katherine Faulders of ABC News has been first on every major development in the federal case against New York Attorney General Letitia James.
Every. Single. One.
Six developments over four months. Same reporter first every time. The same “sources tell me.” The same pipeline.
Her sources are anonymous. Mine are hyperlinked. You can verify every claim I make. Can you verify hers?
The Timeline
September 17, 6:26 AM – Faulders breaks the first major leak: “Top Trump administration officials are pressuring federal prosecutors in Virginia to indict NY AG Letitia James for mortgage fraud, despite investigators so far failing to find sufficient evidence supporting such charges.”
The article revealed grand jury witness counts, specific witness testimony, internal DOJ recruiting materials, and senior DOJ assessments that the case couldn’t be proven. Details no reporter should have had.
October 9, 4:31 PM – Faulders breaks the indictment: “New York AG Letitia James was indicted Thursday on at least one count of alleged fraud, sources familiar with the matter tell me.”
But the same day, ABC reported that DOJ leadership was “caught off guard” by the indictment – framing the prosecution as a rogue action from the moment it was announced.
October 23, 1:15 PM – Faulders breaks another leak: “Evidence appears to undercut claims against Letitia James, prosecutors found.”
The article revealed an internal DOJ memo showing James received only ~$800 in financial benefit – undermining the fraud charges two weeks after the indictment.
October 24, 11:10 AM – Faulders breaks the arraignment: “NY Attorney General Letitia James has pleaded not guilty.”
December 4, 5:36 PM – Faulders breaks the sealed grand jury result: “A federal grand jury in Norfolk, Virginia, refused to indict New York Attorney General Letitia James for alleged mortgage fraud on Thursday, sources said.”
The Norfolk grand jury had chosen secrecy. The magistrate sealed everything. Faulders had it anyway. A clear Rule 6(e) violation.
December 11, 3:03 PM – Faulders breaks the Alexandria grand jury result: “For a second time in a week, a federal grand jury in Virginia has refused to indict New York Attorney General Letitia James for alleged mortgage fraud, sources tell me.”
Seven minutes later, ABC’s official account posted the article at 3:10 PM. The grand jury didn’t return in open court until 4:39 PM. Faulders had it 96 minutes early. The article was live 89 minutes early.
Six for Six. Five-to-Zero.
Six major developments. Same reporter first every time. Five leaks of non-public information. Every single one helped the defense. One scoop on a public arraignment. Six for six.
September 17: “No clear evidence” — poisoned the well before charges were filed
October 9: “Caught off guard” — framed the indictment as a rogue action the moment it was announced
October 23: “Evidence undercuts” with $800 figure — sabotaged the indictment two weeks after it was filed
October 24: Arraignment/plea — neutral (public event)
December 4: Sealed grand jury refusal — leaked proceedings that were supposed to stay secret
December 11: Grand jury refusal 96 minutes early — preempted the grand jury’s own announcement
Five-to-zero. Not a single leak of non-public information helped the prosecution.
Every defense-favorable leak came with the same attribution: “sources say,” “sources tell me,” “sources familiar with the matter.”
Someone inside the DOJ has been feeding Katherine Faulders for four months. And every time, the leak helped Letitia James.
What Faulders Had Access To
The September 17 article opened with this:
“After a five-month investigation and interviews with more than a dozen witnesses, federal prosecutors have so far uncovered no clear evidence that James knowingly made false statements to a financial institution to secure favorable terms on a mortgage for her Virginia home, according to multiple sources briefed on the investigation.”
But ABC’s sources went far beyond general conclusions. Count what they leaked:
Grand jury proceedings: “Since federal prosecutors began looking into James’ Virginia property, they have interviewed or presented to the grand jury 15 witnesses, including insurers, loan officers, underwriters, realtors, and James’ niece.”
Specific witness testimony: “A loan underwriter interviewed by investigators said that, in the process of approving the loan, she never looked at or considered the power of attorney document that incorrectly listed the home as James’ primary residence, according to sources.”
Investigative conclusions: “DOJ investigators would later confirm Lowell’s claim that the POA document was the only document in James’ mortgage file that stated she would live in the home, sources said.”
Internal DOJ recruiting materials: ABC obtained Ed Martin’s “Help Wanted” recruiting email – “according to materials reviewed by ABC News.”
Senior DOJ assessments: “Sources said senior DOJ leadership believes Martin would be unable to prove any allegations beyond a reasonable doubt.”
ABC News didn’t have a leak. They had a pipeline into the grand jury room.
The Cross-Check
We verified every timestamp using Twitter’s snowflake IDs – unique identifiers that encode the exact millisecond each tweet was created. The timestamps are forensically verifiable. Anyone can check them.
We searched for any reporter who broke a major development before Faulders.
There were none.
Not on September 17. Not on October 9. Not on October 23. Not on December 4. Not on December 11.
No other reporter ever broke a leak before Faulders in this case. Not once.
She is the primary distribution point.
The Parallel Leaking
On December 11, look at the attributions:
Katherine Faulders (3:03 PM): “sources tell me”
Carol Leonnig (3:20 PM): “sources to me”
These reporters aren’t citing each other. They’re citing their own sources. Multiple people inside the process were leaking to multiple reporters simultaneously.
In a normal news cycle, reporters chase the scoop. Here, the scoop chased them. The simultaneous breaking of news across rival networks within a 20-minute window indicates a push strategy – information being pushed out to ensure saturation before the grand jury could make its own announcement.
Faulders was first. But she wasn’t alone. This was coordinated distribution.
The Lowell Problem
Both times grand jury results leaked, Abbe Lowell had a polished statement ready.
On December 4, his prepared statement was posted by MacFarlane at 6:58 PM – within 82 minutes of Faulders’ first tweet about the sealed proceeding.
On December 11, it was worse. ABC’s article at posted on Twitter at 3:10 PM already included Lowell’s statement – 89 minutes before the grand jury returned at 4:39 PM:
“This unprecedented rejection makes even clearer that this case should never have seen the light of day. Career prosecutors who knew better refused to bring it, and now two different grand juries in two different cities have refused to allow these baseless charges to be brought. Any further attempt to revive these discredited charges would be a mockery of our system of justice.”
That’s not a quick reaction. That’s lawyered language – “unprecedented rejection,” “mockery of our system of justice,” “two different grand juries in two different cities.” A statement like this takes time to draft, approve with the client, and clear with the firm.
When did Lowell know?
The Questions
Who has been feeding Katherine Faulders since September?
Why did every leak of non-public information help the defense?
Who had access to grand jury proceedings, witness testimony, internal memos, AND both grand jury results?
Is ABC News aware their reporter has been the first outlet on every major leak in a federal obstruction pattern?
Has anyone at ABC asked Faulders who her sources are?
When did Abbe Lowell learn each grand jury result?
Is there a leak investigation? If not, why not?
The Pattern
This isn’t one leak. This isn’t two leaks. This is a four-month operation running through a single reporter at a single network.
September through December. Grand jury details to grand jury results. Internal memos to sealed proceedings. All through the same channel.
Someone inside the DOJ decided that Katherine Faulders would be the distribution point for information designed to undermine the prosecution of Letitia James.
And it worked. The “weak case” narrative was established in September – before charges were filed. It was reinforced in October – after the indictment. It was cemented in December – when both grand jury results leaked before they were public.
By the time legal commentators wrote their analyses, the narrative was already set. They were just repeating what “sources” had told Faulders months earlier.
This Wasn’t Journalism
Journalism is chasing stories. This was receiving them.
Journalism is verifying information. This was publishing what sources provided.
Journalism is holding power accountable. This was helping power escape accountability.
Katherine Faulders didn’t investigate the Letitia James case. She was the outlet for people inside the DOJ who wanted to sabotage it.
Six for six. Five-to-zero on leaks of non-public information. A four-month pipeline into the grand jury room.
This wasn’t journalism. This was a distribution channel for obstruction.
The Documents Don’t Change
The tweets are documented. The snowflake IDs encode the timestamps. The pattern is exposed.
I’ve shown who received the leaks. The question is who sent them.
Faulders publishes what anonymous sources whisper. I publish what public records prove. Her sources hide. Mine have hyperlinks.
I’m ready to answer questions under oath. Is Katherine Faulders?
Sam Antar is a convicted felon and registered Democrat. As CFO of Crazy Eddie, he committed securities fraud in the 1980s. Since cooperating with federal authorities, he has spent over 30 years training law enforcement agencies including the FBI, SEC, IRS, and DOJ. He has never been paid or promised anything in return for this investigation. He follows the documents, not the politics.
Faulders publishes what anonymous sources whisper. I publish what public records prove. Her sources hide. Mine have hyperlinks.
Follow @SamAntar on X for updates.
Written by Sam Antar | Forensic Accountant & Fraud Investigator
© 2025 Sam Antar. All rights reserved.