Steve Bannon Arrested, Charged for Border Wall Fundraiser Fraud

Bannon, who joins a growing list of former Trump advisers who have been indicted or found guilty, was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud given his role in the fraudulent "We Build the Wall" GoFundMe Campaign. Brian Kolfage, Andrew Badolato, and Timothy Shea, also in federal custody with Bannon, could similarly face up to 20 years in jail for each charge. 

RELATED: Empire Files: Abby Martin Exposes Steve Bannon

The campaign, which scammed donors over $25 million under the guise of raising funds to build a wall on the U.S. southern border with Mexico, funneled hundreds of thousands to a shell company Shea controlled as well as $350,000 to Kolfage for his personal use. Bannon himself is accused of receiving over $1 million, channeled through a non-profit he controlled. 

While donors were told Kolfage, the campaign organizer, "would not be paid a cent," the quartet concealed payments through fake invoices and sham 'vendor agreements.'

Linked to the We Build the Wall PAC—whose board and advisory committee feature Erik Prince, founder of private military contractor Blackrock, and World Series champion pitcher, Curt Schilling—the campaign has received public endorsements from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)  and Donald Trump Jr. However, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh Mcenany has downplayed the U.S. president's involvement with Bannon and this project.

"President Trump has not been involved with Steve Bannon since the campaign and the early part of the Administration, and he does not know the people involved with this project," McEnany explained. It was at President Trump's urging, however, that DHS awarded a $400 million contract to a company affiliated with Bannon's "We Build the Wall" efforts, and promotional materials for the campaign included Trump's image with a thumbs-up gesture reading "Trump Approved!"

Self-styled as the "largest GoFundMe campaign in history," the "We Build the Wall" campaign may unleash further legal troubles for Bannon—arrested Thursday on his $28 million yacht near Connecticut—given the recent news that state and federal prosecutors have begun investigating the $300 million private offerings for his GTV Media Group, launched earlier this year with exiled Chinese businessman Guo Wengui.