Conservative podcast host Steve Bannon pled guilty in a New York State court on Feb. 11 to a fraud charge in connection with a push to fund private construction of the border wall.
Bannon, 71, entered a plea agreement with prosecutors to avoid jail time. In return, he received a three-year, conditional discharge that requires him to stay out of trouble to avoid future punishment.
As he left the courtroom, Bannon told reporters that he felt “like a million bucks.”
The former adviser to President Donald Trump initially pled not guilty to charges of money laundering, conspiracy, and a scheme to defraud for allegedly deceiving donors to a nonprofit he co-founded, We Build the Wall Inc.
The organization raised more than $15 million from donors across the country through a crowdfunding website. It promised that all proceeds would go toward building the southern border wall.
The idea for the initiative originated with Brian Kolfage, a decorated Air Force veteran. In 2023, Kolfage was sentenced in federal court to four years and three months in prison for his role in the scheme.
Kolfage repeatedly told donors that he would “not take a penny” of the proceeds for himself but ultimately pled guilty to charges of tax and wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
“I made a promise not to personally benefit and I broke that promise,” Kolfage told Judge Analisa Torres of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York at the time.
Kolfage was ordered to pay $25 million in restitution to donors, as was financier Andrew Badolato, another co-defendant who pled guilty. Badolato received a three-year prison sentence.
A federal jury convicted Colorado businessman Timothy Shea for his role in the scheme. He was sentenced to five years and three months in prison and ordered to forfeit $1.8 million and pay restitution of the same amount.
Although Bannon initially faced prosecution in that case, Trump pardoned him during the final hours of his first presidential term. A year later, in 2022, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg brought the state charges against Bannon.
Bragg’s team noted at a November 2024 hearing that Bannon initially dismissed the fundraising campaign as impractical in an email.
“Isn’t this a scam? You can’t build the wall for this much money,” Bannon wrote, according to prosecutor Jeffrey Levinson.
“Poor Americans shouldn’t be using hard-earned money to chase something not doable,” Bannon continued.
Speaking with reporters on Feb. 11, Bannon called on Attorney General Pam Bondi to launch a criminal investigation into Bragg and New York Attorney General Letitia James.
Bannon’s attorney, Arthur Aidala, did not immediately return The Epoch Times’ request for comment.
