Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

Judi Lynn

(160,211 posts)
Fri May 7, 2021, 03:09 AM May 2021

Bannon partner in alleged border wall fundraising fraud scheme hit with new tax charges

Source: Washington Post

By
Matt Zapotosky
Reporter
May 6, 2021 at 6:02 p.m. CDT

An Air Force veteran who prosecutors allege worked with Stephen K. Bannon — President Donald Trump’s former chief strategist — to defraud donors to a fundraising campaign for a U.S.-Mexico border wall has been indicted on new tax charges.

Brian Kolfage, a conservative activist who lost three limbs in Iraq and was the founder and public face of the “We Build the Wall” fundraising campaign, was charged in federal court in Florida with filing a false tax return. In an indictment, prosecutors alleged that Kolfage claimed to the IRS in his 2019 tax return that he had a total income of just over $63,000 and did not report hundreds of thousands of dollars deposited into his personal bank account from “We Build the Wall” and other sources.

Federal prosecutors in New York last year charged Bannon, Kolfage and two others with defrauding donors to the campaign, which was publicly supported by several of Trump’s allies and raised more than $25 million from hundreds of thousands of donors. In an indictment in that case, prosecutors alleged that the men lied when they said they would not take any compensation from the campaign.

Kolfage and Bannon had defended themselves against those allegations, asserting that the indictment was politically motivated and designed to undermine supporters of Trump, who touted a U.S.-Mexico border wall during his presidential campaign. In January, Trump pardoned Bannon, and Bannon has since been fighting to get the case against him formally dismissed. The U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan is seeking an “administrative” termination of Bannon’s case, which would halt the prosecution against him for good but would not clear his name from the docket. Trump did not pardon Kolfage or the others charged.

Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/brian-kolfage-steve-bannon-tax-charge/2021/05/06/61e070b4-aeb6-11eb-b476-c3b287e52a01_story.html

3 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
Bannon partner in alleged border wall fundraising fraud scheme hit with new tax charges (Original Post) Judi Lynn May 2021 OP
We Shilled The Wall tanyev May 2021 #1
Hold on a second... sheepfarm May 2021 #2
Optics for the marks... Ohio Joe May 2021 #3

sheepfarm

(38 posts)
2. Hold on a second...
Fri May 7, 2021, 05:54 PM
May 2021
In January, Trump pardoned Bannon, and Bannon has since been fighting to get the case against him formally dismissed.


...dirty foreigner here, but I thought to get a Presidential pardon in the USA, you had to admit guilt to the charge against you? So why is Bannon trying to get a case against him that he admits he did, dismissed?

Ohio Joe

(21,655 posts)
3. Optics for the marks...
Fri May 7, 2021, 07:17 PM
May 2021

If he is really trying to get it dismissed (he lies... A lot. So if he says it, it is likely not true), he is doing so only so he can tell his followers that 'the deep state' is still after him... If he is lying about it, same deal, rile up the marks.

Latest Discussions»Latest Breaking News»Bannon partner in alleged...