WASHINGTON — The Justice Department has launched an investigation into Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, examining allegations of mortgage fraud even as she battles the Trump administration over its attempt to remove her from office.

According to a person familiar with the inquiry, federal prosecutors have issued subpoenas following a criminal referral from the nation’s top housing regulator. The referral stems from claims that Cook misrepresented two properties she purchased in 2021 — in Atlanta and Ann Arbor — by listing them as “primary residences,” which typically come with lower interest rates and easier lending terms.

The probe comes just days after President Donald Trump fired Cook on Aug. 25, citing the same allegations. Cook, who has refused to step down, has accused the administration of trying to strip the central bank of its independence and consolidate political control over monetary policy.

“This Justice Department — perhaps the most politicized in American history — will do whatever President Trump demands,” her attorney Abbe David Lowell said, blasting the investigation as retaliatory.

Cook’s legal team insists the case is baseless. “The questions over how Governor Cook described her properties … are not fraud,” Lowell added, calling the inquiry an attempt to generate a justification for her ouster.

The Justice Department declined to comment, though the investigation is reportedly being overseen by Ed Martin, head of DOJ’s Weaponization Working Group, which is handling several cases involving Trump critics.

The controversy marks the latest flashpoint in Trump’s broader clash with the Federal Reserve. For decades, the central bank has operated independently from the White House, but Cook’s firing — and the criminal referral behind it — have intensified concerns among economists and lawmakers that Trump is seeking to bend the Fed to his will.

Cook, appointed to the Fed’s Board of Governors in 2022, is the first Black woman to hold the position. She has already filed suit to block her removal, arguing the president lacks legal authority to dismiss her without cause.

For now, the DOJ’s mortgage probe adds yet another layer to a high-stakes standoff that could reshape both the Federal Reserve’s independence and the nation’s political climate.