Topline
Brian Kolfage, who was indicted final yr together with Trump advisor Steve Bannon for allegedly operating a fraudulent effort to lift money for a border wall, was hit Thursday with new tax fraud costs by a federal grand jury in Florida.
Building crews set up new border wall sections seen from Tijuana, Mexico.
Key Info
Final yr, prosecutors filed fraud and cash laundering conspiracy costs in opposition to Kolfage, Bannon and a number of other others who allegedly took cash from We Construct The Wall, a bunch that raised over $25 million by vowing to pay for a wall on the southern border.
Kolfage, a disabled Air Power veteran, now stands accused of failing to inform the IRS concerning the cash he drew from We Construct The Wall and different teams in 2019, netting extra costs of wire fraud and submitting a false tax return, based on a press release from federal prosecutors.
Bannon was given a pardon by President Donald Trump lower than 12 hours earlier than leaving workplace and was removed as a defendant from final yr’s case, however Kolfage and the opposite We Construct The Wall founders have been not pardoned regardless of going through the identical costs.
An lawyer representing Kolfage — who pleaded not guilty on final yr’s costs — didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
Massive Quantity
$350,000. That’s how a lot cash Kolfage allegedly took from We Construct The Wall, federal prosecutors said last August, in comparison with over $1 million taken by Bannon.
Key Background
Prosecutors accused We Construct The Wall’s founders of deceiving their donors by utilizing the group to complement themselves, using donations to pay for their very own journey and different private payments regardless of claiming to be a volunteer-run group. In addition they allegedly created faux invoices in an effort to maintain their money-funnelling scheme secret.
Essential Quote
“Whereas repeatedly assuring donors that Brian Kolfage, the founder and public face of We Construct the Wall, wouldn’t be paid a cent, the defendants secretly schemed to go lots of of 1000’s of {dollars} to Kolfage, which he used to fund his lavish way of life,” Audrey Strauss, the U.S. Legal professional for the Southern District of New York, said last August.
Shocking Reality
Bannon framed We Construct The Wall as a manner of serving to Trump construct a barrier on the U.S.-Mexico border, a key marketing campaign promise for the previous president. Nonetheless, Trump didn’t appear to understand Bannon’s help: He told reporters final yr the non-public wall-building effort was “inappropriate” and “carried out for showboating causes.”
What To Watch For
Bannon continues to be going through an investigation by New York state prosecutors into his position within the wall-building scheme, multiple news outlets reported earlier this yr. Bannon hasn’t been charged with against the law in New York State, however he’s not proof against state costs as a result of presidential pardoning energy solely covers federal issues.
