(VOFNEWS)– Steve Bannon, Former White House adviser, was arrested Thursday on charges of fraud that he and 3 others ripped off donors to an online fundraising scheme “We Build The Wall” on the US-Mexico border..
Mr Bannon and three others defrauded hundreds of thousands of donors in connection with the “We Build the Wall” campaign, which raised $25m (£19m), the US Department of Justice (DoJ) said.
The charges were contained in an indictment unsealed in Manhattan federal court.
Mr Bannon received more than $1m, at least some of which he used to cover personal expenses, the DoJ said.
A phone at the office of Bannon’s lawyer went unanswered Thursday morning. A spokesperson for Bannon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Before he was tapped to lead Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign in its critical final months, Bannon led the conservative Breitbart News. After Trump was elected, he moved on to a top White House strategy post.
“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,” said Mr, Strauss, the Acting US Attorney for the Southern District of New York (SDNY).
