Tag Archives: Brian Kolfage

Semafor reports: Two former associates of ex-White House advisor Steve Bannon will be going to prison for defrauding donors in a campaign that purported to build Trump’s southern border wall.  Air Force veteran Brian Kolfage, 41, was sentenced to more than four years in prison, and Andrew Badolato, 58, to three years. Both pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire …

Law & Crime reports: In the twilight of his administration, Donald Trump pardoned Bannon for charges that he conspired to commit wire fraud and money laundering in connection with a crowdfunded effort to construct a barrier on the U.S.-Mexico border, but the former president left Bannon’s accused co-conspirators twisting in the wind on similar accusations. Now, two of the three …

Just like Roger Stone, he won’t shut up: Federal prosecutors are urging a recently indicted border-security advocate to clam up or face the possibility of a gag order limiting his ability to speak out publicly about the criminal case he is facing. Lawyers from the U.S. Attorney’s office in Manhattan wrote to a federal judge Friday to ask her to …

The Verge reports: The recently unsealed case alleges that Bannon and others broke repeated promises to put “100 percent” of donations toward the wall. The group secretly arranged private payments through a nonprofit, giving Kolfage $100,000 within months of starting fundraising. While claiming the funds went toward social media expenses, they allegedly diverted $350,000 to Kolfage — money Kolfage allegedly …

Buzzfeed News reports: Stephen Bannon, a former top aide to President Donald Trump, and Brian Kolfage, the leader of the crowdfunded “We Build The Wall” effort, have been charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering, federal prosecutors said Thursday. Kolfage, the criminal complaint said, “covertly took more than $350,000 in funds that has been donated to “We …

Just in from the Justice Department: Audrey Strauss, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Philip R. Bartlett, Inspector-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the United States Postal Inspection Service (“USPIS”), announced the unsealing of an indictment charging BRIAN KOLFAGE, STEPHEN BANNON, ANDREW BADOLATO, and TIMOTHY SHEA for their roles in defrauding …

The Guardian reports: The construction of a private border wall partially funded by rightwing allies of Donald Trump continued with vigor in south Texas this week, seemingly in blatant violation of a court injunction ordering work to be suspended. On Thursday and Friday, within three days of a temporary restraining order being issued, the Guardian found construction crews with at …

ABC News reports: The group that raised millions of dollars to build a privately funded border wall separating Mexico from the U.S. is under criminal investigation in Florida, according to officials. We Build The Wall, a nonprofit organization that crowdfunded more than $25 million on GoFundMe, is under investigation by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Services, which has oversight …

Talking Points Memo reports: A private border wall construction project lauded by Trumpers nationwide is actually partially on Mexican soil, Mexican government engineers alleged in photos their American counterparts shared with the builders this month. Tempting an international incident, the border wall group isn’t budging. Instead, they’ve moved to attack mode, with their founder calling the binational body that governs …

Buzzfeed News reports: The viral crowdfunding effort to build a wall on the southern border aimed at deterring immigrants from crossing illegally was only recently completed, but on Monday the newly installed wall suffered a major setback — a large gate built into the barrier was ordered open indefinitely by officials. The controversial half-mile wall constructed along the US–Mexico border …

NBC News reports: The GoFundMe fundraiser that promised to help privately fund President Donald Trump’s plan for a wall spanning the length of the U.S.-Mexico border surpassed $20 million dollars in donations this week. But the man behind it — Brian Kolfage, a rising conservative media star — may have had another goal. Through his border-wall campaign, he claims to …

Via press release: Heartened by the overwhelming support of fellow Americans who have donated over $20 million to the viral GoFundMe campaign “We the People Will Fund the Wall,” war hero and triple-amputee veteran Brian Kolfage announced the launch of a 501(c)4 called “We Build the Wall, Inc.” which will fund the private construction of a wall along the United …

NBC News reports: An internet fundraiser for Donald Trump’s border wall took in more than $7 million from over 131,000 donors by early Thursday evening. The Florida man behind the GoFundMe page, a triple-amputee Iraq War veteran named Brian Kolfage, spent a large portion of the fundraising campaign’s description outlining his past, including a bolded section titled “How do you …