FBI steps up its mortgage probe

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The white collar crimes divisions of at least 25 field offices have been diverted to subprime crisis probes.

Kenneth Kaiser, chief of the bureau's criminal investigative division, gave the order for the shift late last week, said FBI spokesman in Washington Bill Carter.

There were already some 150 agents working on more than 1300 mortgage cases before the change. "If you're seeing a significant crime problem, you have to move resources," Carter said. "We've got a big problem with mortgage fraud." The changes come as many politicians say the FBI is already spread too thinly.

President Bush ordered the agency to concentrate on national security after the 2001 terrorist attacks.

Carter said the bureau is "not walking away" from pending investigations. "We're just saying: 'Don't open any new cases'," he said.

The changes are at FBI offices in states where the housing crisis has hit hardest.