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NEW YORK CITY – Former Trump White House strategist Steve Bannon turned himself over to New York authorities Thursday to face state charges related to the “We Build the Wall” fundraiser.
Bannon was charged with six counts in all, including money laundering in the second degree, scheme to defraud in the first degree and conspiracy in the fourth and fifth degrees. The indictment alleges that Bannon used WeBuildTheWall, Inc. to draw contributions from a crowdfunding website, which were then funneled through “various third party entities,” with part of the money going to the CEO of WeBuildTheWall despite that organization and the CEO making repeated statements that he would not be compensated.
The indictment does not name anyone else, identifying the CEO as “Unindicted Co-Conspirator 1.” A federal indictment filed in 2020 listed WeBuildTheWall founder Brian Kolfage as a co-defendant, alleging that he and Bannon told the public that Kolfage would “not take a penny” in compensation from the organization, only to then receive money through a third party entity. Kolfage pleaded guilty in the federal case to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
Bannon was expected to be released on “no cash bail and surrender his passport,” a source familiar with the case told Fox News. He found out about the indictment a week ago when Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office called one of his lawyers to inform him.
STEVE BANNON FOUND GUILTY OF CONTEMPT OF CONGRESS FOR IGNORING JAN. 6 HEARING SUBPOENA
Former White House strategist Steve Bannon arrives at the Manhattan district attorney’s office to surrender himself to New York authorities, Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, in New York. (AP Photo/Eduardo Munoz Alvarez)
Bannon pleaded not guilty to federal charges of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and money laundering for his role in the fundraiser, and was pardoned by former President Trump before a trial was held.
“Just days after being swatted three different times by deranged thugs from New York City inspired by the Biden Administration to assassinate me by police, the Soros-backed DA has now decided to pursue phony charges against me 60 days before the midterm election because WarRoom is the major source of the MAGA grassroots movement,” Bannon said in a statement.
Read the indictment:
“The [Southern District of New York] did the exact same thing in August 2020 to try to take me out of the election,” Bannon continued. “It didn’t work then, it certainly won’t work now. This is nothing more than a partisan political weaponization of the criminal justice system.”
Bragg’s office declined to comment to Fox News. Another attorney for Bannon, Bob Costello, had “no comment” on the indictment.
Former Trump White House chief strategist Steve Bannon is seen at U.S. District Court in Washington, July 21, 2022. (Reuters/Michael A. McCoy/File Photo)
Bannon, in his statement, claimed that he was being targeted for his politics and that authorities would have to “kill [him]” before he stopped “fighting.”
STEVE BANNON’S REQUEST FOR NEW TRIAL AFTER CONVICTION REJECTED BY JUDGE
“I am proud to be a leading voice on protecting our borders and building a wall to keep our country safe from drugs and violent criminals. The WarRoom show will be more vital, more intense, more urgent, and bigger this time,” he said in his statement. “They are coming after all of us, not only President Trump and myself. I am never going to stop fighting. In fact, I have not yet begun to fight. They will have to kill me first.”
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. (Barry Williams/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
The Washington Post, citing anonymous sources, reported that the state criminal case would resemble an earlier attempted federal prosecution, in which Bannon was accused of duping donors who gave money to fund a wall on the U.S. southern border.
In a separate case, Bannon was found guilty of contempt of Congress in July after he ignored a subpoena from the House Jan. 6 committee. He is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 21 and faces a minimum of 30 days in jail.
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Fox News’ Brie Stimson contributed to this report.