Bannon Indicted In New York For Border Wall Scheme—Here Are The Charges He’s Facing

Topline

Former Trump advisor Steve Bannon and the organization WeBuildTheWall were indicted in New York state court Thursday for money laundering, conspiracy and scheme to defraud, marking the second time that Bannon has faced consequences for his alleged role in the border wall fundraising scheme, over a year after he got out of federal charges due to a pardon from former President Donald Trump.

Steve Bannon arrives at the New York District Attorney’s office to turn himself in on September 8 in … [+] New York City.

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Key Facts

The indictment charges WeBuildTheWall and Bannon—who pleaded not guilty—with two counts of money laundering in the second degree, two counts of conspiracy in the fourth degree, one count of scheme to defraud in the first degree and one count of conspiracy in the first degree.

Bannon chaired the advisory board of WeBuildTheWall, which purported to raise money from the public to build a U.S.-Mexico border wall.

The indictment alleges that despite publicly claiming WeBuildTheWall would not pay any salary to CEO Brian Kolfage, the group actually funneled more than $250,000 in compensation to Kolfage from January 11, 2019, through the end of that year, constituting the alleged fraud and conspiracy (Kolfage has pleaded guilty to similar charges in federal court, and was identified in the indictment as “unindicted co-conspirator 1”).

WeBuildTheWall repeatedly stated that Kolfage would not take a salary, a pledge that served as a “material part” of the fundraising campaign, the indictment says, including through media appearances, on the campaign’s website and in bylaws submitted to a crowdfunding website to convince it to release funds to the organization.

Funds were allegedly secretly transferred to Kolfage through third-party entities, including through a nonprofit organization operated by Bannon, which constitutes the alleged money laundering.

The indictment cites alleged text messages from Bannon in which he said his nonprofit group “can pay [Kolfage]” and texted to another unnamed co-conspirator there are “[n]o deals I don’t approve; and I pay [Kolfage] so what’s to worry.”

Chief Critic

Bannon publicly decried the charges against him on Wednesday as “phony” and accused New York prosecutors of acting with political intent ahead of the midterm elections. “This is nothing more than a partisan political weaponization of the criminal justice system,” Bannon said in a statement.

What To Watch For

Bannon surrendered to prosecutors in New York on Thursday morning and pleaded not guilty during his arraignment hours later. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg told reporters Thursday that Bannon could face a maximum prison sentence of five to 15 years if convicted, while WeBuildTheWall would face financial penalties.

Big Number

More than $15 million. That’s how much WeBuildTheWall raised in donations, according to the New York indictment. The federal indictment in 2020 against the scheme put that figure even higher, at more than $25 million.

Key Background

Bannon was previously indicted for his role in the border wall fundraising scheme by federal prosecutors in August 2020, along with Kolfage and other WeBuildTheWall associates Andrew Badolato and Timothy Shea. The ex-Trump advisor pleaded not guilty and was ultimately cleared of all federal charges against him in May 2021, after Trump pardoned Bannon in the final days of his presidency. Reports emerged soon after Bannon was pardoned that the Manhattan District Attorney’s office—which worked with state prosecutors on Bannon’s indictment—was looking into the fundraising scheme. Kolfage and Badolato have both pleaded guilty to the charges against them. Shea pleaded not guilty and his case went to trial, but ended in a mistrial earlier this year after jurors failed to reach a unanimous verdict.

Tangent

Bannon has also been indicted and found guilty of contempt of Congress after he failed to comply with a subpoena from the House January 6 Committee. The Trump ally will be sentenced on October 21 and could face up to two years in prison for the crime.