Sept. 20 (UPI) -- The acting U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia was forced out after failing to bring criminal charges against New York Attorney General Letitia James regarding mortgage loan fraud.
Erik Siebert notified staff on Friday that he resigned, but President Donald Trump said he was fired. Siebert was nominated for the position and was awaiting Senate confirmation.
On Saturday, Attorney General Pam Bondi appointed Mary "Maggie" Cleary, an attorney active in Republican politics, as acting U.S. attorney for the division, according an internal email obtained by Politico and The Washington Post.
This month, Cleary rejoined the DOJ as a senior counsel in the criminal division in the District of Columbia after working in the Culpepper Commonwealth's Attorney's Office and Virginia state agencies.
She was placed on administrative leave in the DOJ's Virginia Western District for being on Capitol grounds during the riot on Jan. 6, 2021. Clear said she was "framed" and was ultimately cleared.
