The Daily Gazette
By Ted Remsnyder
ALBANY — A former federal prosecutor who brought cases against terrorists and drug traffickers is facing what may be her biggest challenge — entering the world of New York politics.
Republican attorney general candidate Saritha Komatireddy is poised to face two-term incumbent Attorney General Letitia James in November.
Komatireddy, who is currently a partner at the Holtzman Vogel law firm, served for over a decade as Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of New York, prosecuting cases involving international terrorism, narcotics, cybercrime and money laundering.
In an interview at The Daily Gazette offices, Komatireddy argued that her experience as a federal prosecutor has prepared her to assume the job as attorney general.
Graduating from Harvard Law School after the Sept. 11 terror attacks, Komatireddy earned a post as a federal prosecutor with a primary focus on terrorism cases.
In 2018, she prosecuted a federal terrorism case against Houston resident Muhanad Mahmoud al Farekh, with the suspect sentenced to 45 years in prison for multiple offenses covering seven years of terrorist conduct, including conspiracy to murder American military personnel in Afghanistan.
“I went after leaders in al-Qaida and ISIS and I was also asked to take over the international narcotics section and went after leaders in the Mexican drug cartel,” Komatireddy said. “I have things that set me apart in my ability to do this [attorney general] job. One, I’ve been a real prosecutor, and that’s simply not true of Letitia James. Two, I know how to work very well with agencies at all levels — local, state and federal.”
James was a public defender, member of the New York City Council and the city’s public advocate before becoming attorney general in 2019.
Komatireddy was unanimously endorsed by the New York Republican State Committee in February and does not expect a primary for the GOP nomination in June.
Komatireddy is seeking to become the first Republican attorney general in the state since former attorney general Dennis Vacco was defeated by Democrat Eliot Spitzer in 1998.
Komatireddy said that she believes that she’s the right candidate to break the three-decade Republican drought in the attorney general’s office and deny James a third term.
“When you talk to New Yorkers about what concerns them the most, they generally tell you two things ¯ affordability and safety,” Komatireddy said. “Safety is the attorney general’s duty and I think we need to have a prosecutor in charge as attorney general who’s focused on keeping New Yorkers safe. That’s not something that we have right now. People see the disorder and lawlessness and it affects their daily lives.”
According to state statistics, violent crimes reported to police statewide have fallen 62% since 1990, but the number of reported crimes have increased recently, with crimes rising in New York City each year between 2019 and 2023 and increasing outside the city in 2022 and 2023 before declining in 2024.
Komatireddy was nominated by President Donald Trump in May 2020 to serve as a federal judge for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, with the Senate not moving forward with a vote on the nomination.
“It was just politics,” Komatireddy said of her nomination not moving forward. “A number of different nominations were held up and mine was among them. It had nothing to do with merit.”
After graduating from Harvard, Komatireddy clerked with then-Judge Brett Kavanaugh on the U.S. Court of Appeals before Kavanaugh became a Supreme Court justice.
James brought a civil fraud lawsuit against Trump and the Trump Organization in 2023, with a 2024 court ruling finding the Trump Organization liable for $500 million in damages for alleged fraud. An appellate court vacated the financial penalty last year.
“Obviously they’re politically motivated,” Komatireddy said of the case.
James’ campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
In October, James was indicted by a federal grand jury in Virginia for bank fraud and a count of making false statements to a financial institution. The charges were dismissed in November.
James filed a pair of lawsuits in January against the Trump administration, arguing that the White House had made an unlawful attempt to stop construction on two offshore wind projects in the state, with James also filing suit in February against the Trump administration over the government’s suspension of funding for the Hudson Tunnel project.
Currently based in New York City, Komatireddy served as Chief of Staff of the Drug Enforcement Administration, in Washington, from 2023 to 2024. The federal agency has approximately 10,000 employees.
“It gave me great insight into how large agencies work,” Komatireddy said of her stint with the DEA. “It’s an agency that has amazing law enforcement agents who are investigating cases and arresting bad guys, but it’s also a regulatory agency that regulates individuals like doctors, pharmacists and promulgates regulations for businesses as well. So I got a great deal of insight into functions.”
A Brooklyn native, Komatireddy is seeking elected office for the first time, with the candidate on a Republican slate this fall that includes Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman in his run against Gov. Kathy Hochul.
“I’ve seen and felt New York get less safe in the last five years and something needs to change,” Komatireddy said.