LA’s top prosecutor attacks AG Rob Bonta over California fraud

Los Angeles’ top federal prosecutor ripped into California Attorney General Rob Bonta as California reels from statewide fraud.

Bill Essayli, first assistant US attorney for the Central District of California, blasted Bonta for trying to defend his efforts.

Bonta had called him out for allegedly saying California failed to “fight” fraud.

“I said ‘prevent.’ Having my office prosecute fraudsters to whom California blindly handed out millions does not count as ‘fighting fraud.’ It’s the federal government cleaning up after you and the Governor’s incompetence,” he wrote on X.

“Maybe you should spend more time prosecuting your own fraudsters and filling up your prisons, and less time cooking up political lawsuits against the Trump Administration,” he added.

Essayli continued to go after Bonta in a subsequent reaction to the attorney general’s post about scammers.

“Do fraudsters get any serious prison time under California’s soft-on-crime laws? Asking for taxpayers,” Essayli wrote on X.

Essayli has been outspoken about the alleged “billions” in fraud within California’s borders. He said earlier this month that Gov. Gavin Newsom has “reigned over billions and billions of dollars of fraud.”

Other conservatives also piled on Bonta.

“Bonta lies. He’s a comfortable liar,” presidential envoy Richard Grenell wrote on X in response to the same Bonta tweet.

Bonta is California’s top state prosecutor, and is also responsible for going after alleged fraud in the state. He had accused the Trump administration of trying to “politicize” California’s fraud investigations.

“In California, we’ve been investigating and prosecuting fraud against government programs for decades and will continue to do so,” he wrote.

Bonta is up for reelection in 2026.

Essayli told the California Post exclusively last week that he can “never have enough” prosecutors to go after fraud in California.

“We’re in a very target-rich environment, and there is no shortage of leads for fraud investigations,” he said.

“I would say we are doing a lot with what we have. We’re probably more productive than this office has been in years.

“However, our biggest limiting factor is having enough quality investigators and attorneys to work up and prosecute the cases.”

Download The California Post App, follow us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters