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Breaking — Steve Bannon, Brian Kolfage arrested and charged by DOJ…
www.citizenfreepress.com ^ | Posted by Kane on August 20, 2020 10:04 am

Posted on 08/20/2020 7:15:08 AM PDT by Red Badger

Steve Bannon, ‘We Build The Wall’ organizers arrested, charged with defrauding donors

Steve Bannon has been federally indicted for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering in connection to a crowdfunding campaign to build a border wall. Bannon was arrested this morning in Washington, D.C. on charges he and others allegedly made false representations about the “We Build the Wall campaign.”

Bannon, 66 is expected to appear in court virtually on Thursday.

Prosecutors said Bannon and others defrauded hundreds of thousands of donors to the online campaign by falsely assuring them the organizers were not taking a penny of donation money — Bannon had publicly stated, “we’re a volunteer organization.”

“Those representations were false,” the indictment said.

Bannon, Brian Koflage, 38, of Mirimar Beach, Florida, Andrew Badolato, 56, of Sarasota, Florida, and Timothy Shea, 49, of Castle Rock, Colorado, were each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. Each charge carries a maximum of 20 years in prison.

The defendants allegedly defrauded hundreds of thousands of donors in connection with the crowdfunding campaign, which raised more than $25 million.

The indictment was brought by prosecutors in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.

“As alleged, the defendants defrauded hundreds of thousands of donors, capitalizing on their interest in funding a border wall to raise millions of dollars, under the false pretense that all of that money would be spent on construction,” acting U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said in a press release. “While repeatedly assuring donors that Brian Kolfage, the founder and public face of We Build the Wall, would not be paid a cent, the defendants secretly schemed to pass hundreds of thousands of dollars to Kolfage, which he used to fund his lavish lifestyle.”

According to the indictment, Bannon took at least $1 million to pay personal expenses.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.


TOPICS: Breaking News; Business/Economy; Crime/Corruption; Government; US: Florida
KEYWORDS: bannon; bannonarrested; braking; briankoflage; briankolfage; greed; guowengui; habbening; koflage; sdny; search; stevebannon; thestorm; unsealedinctemnts; webuildthewall
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To: kiryandil
We need some hangings at SDNY.

In a legal sense, maybe. I'm sure you are not advocating violence on FR.

201 posted on 08/20/2020 3:31:55 PM PDT by Fury (.)
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To: dontreadthis
“Those representations were false,” the indictment the lying scum Democrat lie-wyers at SDNY said lied.

Trump is running out of time to deal with these scum Democrat embeds...

OTOH, this might be a sign that the carpet-bombing from the Trump camp is about to begin...

202 posted on 08/20/2020 3:34:26 PM PDT by kiryandil (Chris Wallace: Because someone has to drive the Clown Car)
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To: prairiebreeze

It’s lawfare. This is The Machine that scumBammy was creating.


203 posted on 08/20/2020 3:35:28 PM PDT by kiryandil (Chris Wallace: Because someone has to drive the Clown Car)
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To: CaptainK

You’ll throw anybody under the bus if you are told to, right? And how did you like the Keebler Elf, at the beginning, when he was Trump’s guy? THINK FOR YOURSELF.


204 posted on 08/20/2020 4:09:15 PM PDT by backwoods-engineer (Politics is the continuation of war by other means. --Clausewitz)
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To: backwoods-engineer

I only reprinted what TRUMP wrote about Bannon.

Your beef seems to be with Trump, so why don’t you do a write in vote in November for President Bannon, since you love him so much.


205 posted on 08/20/2020 4:12:52 PM PDT by CaptainK ('No collusion, no obstruction, he's a leaker')
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To: null and void

>>’Does it offend you that he is a breeder? “<<

I have no clue what your point is here.


206 posted on 08/20/2020 4:37:40 PM PDT by devane617 (Kyrie Eleison, where I'm going, will you follow?)
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To: devane617

You referred to him as “What”, since you attempted to dehumanize him, I was curious as to the reason.


207 posted on 08/20/2020 4:50:19 PM PDT by null and void (Quarantine the sick. Shield the vulnerable. Free everyone else!)
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To: Red Badger

Steve Bannon was fired by PDJT for very good reasons.

From 2018:

“Steve had very little to do with our historic victory, which was delivered by the forgotten men and women of this country. Yet Steve had everything to do with the loss of a Senate seat in Alabama held for more than thirty years by Republicans. Steve doesn’t represent my base—he’s only in it for himself.

Steve pretends to be at war with the media, which he calls the opposition party, yet he spent his time at the White House leaking false information to the media to make himself seem far more important than he was. It is the only thing he does well. Steve was rarely in a one-on-one meeting with me and only pretends to have had influence to fool a few people with no access and no clue, whom he helped write phony books.”

We all need to take to heart what PDJT said and not rush to defend a man who isn’t one of us.


208 posted on 08/20/2020 4:57:26 PM PDT by Armscor38
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To: lodi90
I’m surprised he didn’t get the FBI SWAT/scuba team like Stone did.

He's a maimed combat vet.

Likely as not he'd later tell the court he had a flashback, doesn't remember anything after the initial contact, and he's really, really sorry about all those dead SWAT team members...

209 posted on 08/20/2020 5:05:46 PM PDT by null and void (Quarantine the sick. Shield the vulnerable. Free everyone else!)
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To: Red Badger
I gave money to the original fund. Withholding judgement for now. The timing is suspect.

They spent 3 years attacking the President over complete bs, and so far have gotten away with it. They will have no qualms about trying to frame anyone for anything.

210 posted on 08/20/2020 5:06:14 PM PDT by Envisioning (Carry safe, always carry, everyday, everywhere.)
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To: MarvinStinson
Enough Said!

Just in time to detour from the FBI Lawyer etc..charged and pled guilty!
And lets not forget Cuomo!

211 posted on 08/20/2020 7:27:28 PM PDT by djstex (Trump 2020 !)
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To: Socon-Econ
These problems are avoidable. What is needed is basic honesty and communication.

Yeah, all Mike Flynn has to do avoid any problems is meet with a couple of FBI agents.

If he uses basic honesty and communication, everything will go OK...

This is political as the day is long.

Note that it dropped on a Thursday - so the Lefty bluecheck Twitter hyenas and their bot followers can savage it all weekend long.

212 posted on 08/20/2020 7:51:50 PM PDT by kiryandil (Chris Wallace: Because someone has to drive the Clown Car)
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To: Diogenesis

Tree. Rope. SDNY.

Some assembly required...


213 posted on 08/20/2020 7:54:08 PM PDT by kiryandil (Chris Wallace: Because someone has to drive the Clown Car)
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To: TheZMan
What I think is hilarious is that YOU think that ANY Federal prosecutor has ANY credibility after the shenanigans over the Oregon standoff, the Bundy ranch circus, the Mueller "investigation", the rigging of Ted Stevens' election by Dirty Emmet Sullivan and his crew of unprosecuted dirty prosecutors, and the unprosecuted dirty prosecutors in the Mike Flynn case.

SDNY is dirty as the day is long. Mary Jo White, anyone?

214 posted on 08/20/2020 8:02:15 PM PDT by kiryandil (Chris Wallace: Because someone has to drive the Clown Car)
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To: Red Badger

Is Bannon a member of the Lincoln Project?

There was a mention of him being connected to some Democrat individual or China lobbyist. Don’t recall any of the details but it was mentioned on Fox News tonight.


215 posted on 08/20/2020 9:21:37 PM PDT by MadMax, the Grinning Reaper
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To: DoodleDawg

The charges, if substantiated in the grand jury/indicting papers, will NOT BE DROPPED. Don’t know which NYSD prosecutor will be handling this case, but I do know that in the 1990’s, the Clinton’s corrupted the SDNY in the case of U.S. vs. LIUNA (Laborers International Union of North America), got AG Reno to squash all the hundreds of indictments/assets seizure efforts (I worked on the Assets Seizure side of the case).
For details of the LIUNA scandal, see “The American Spectator”, Byron York, April 1997, “Let’s Be Friends: A Mob-Controlled Union Delivers the Goods for Bill”.

[I keep about a dozen copies of this very important and well done investigative article on my bookcase. It shows just how corrupt the Clintons, DSCC, etc. were even back them).

Bannon is another case at another time with a new set of US Attorneys. Let’s see what is out there. There were some Republican/Conservative operatives who were unsavory and self-serving opportunists.

Look at who is in the Lincoln Project. A bunch of ex-Trump campaign aides, etc. turned psychopathic Trump haters - Wilson, Schmidt, etc. They make Charles Manson seem sane.

Let’s take one event/incident at a time and not make prejudgments.


216 posted on 08/20/2020 9:29:49 PM PDT by MadMax, the Grinning Reaper
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To: hawkaw
including living a lavish lifestyle as the indictment suggests

You can't tell that's a gratuitous smear by SDNY Democommie lawthugs who have only put themselves "in harm's way" to the extent of a poorly mixed margarita at their favorite local faux-Mexican bistro in Queens?

217 posted on 08/20/2020 10:38:28 PM PDT by kiryandil (Chris Wallace: Because someone has to drive the Clown Car)
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To: null and void; Zeroisanumber1
Welcome to FR! I see you showed up at the beginning of campaign season...

Listen to the crickets from Zero here. Loud, ain't they?    winking face

218 posted on 08/20/2020 10:40:46 PM PDT by kiryandil (Chris Wallace: Because someone has to drive the Clown Car)
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To: Lisbon1940
Harris was a prosecutor —plenty of makeup.

Willie Brown has photos of her in whiteface...

219 posted on 08/20/2020 10:51:22 PM PDT by kiryandil (Chris Wallace: Because someone has to drive the Clown Car)
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To: Valin
Trey Gowdy calls Bannon arrest a ‘classic fraud scheme’

I'm old enough to remember when Trey Gowdy struck a magnificent blow against The Democrat Machine when he was in CONgress.

Oh, wait - that never happened, did it?

Sit on it and spin, Gowdy, you useless pile of rotting dogsqueezins.

220 posted on 08/20/2020 11:00:34 PM PDT by kiryandil (Chris Wallace: Because someone has to drive the Clown Car)
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