The Manhattan district attorney’s office subpoenaed financial records tied to Steve Bannon’s crowd-funded border wall effort, a move that signals an escalation of a criminal investigation into the former White House chief strategist.
Following then-President Donald Trump’s pardon of Bannon in January for federal conspiracy crimes related to the border wall project, prosecutors forwarded grand jury subpoenas to Wells Fargo and GoFundMe, which handled some accounts used for Bannon’s We Build the Wall project, according to documents seen by CNN.
The Manhattan court’s subpoena suggests Bannon could still face state criminal charges, which would be unaffected by a presidential pardon.
New Jersey’s attorney general’s office also started a civil inquiry into the border wall project. The New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs already subpoenaed We Build the Wall for documents in September and sought a wide scope of its records, according to court filings.
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“The Division of Consumer Affairs neither confirms nor denies the existence or status of investigations,” a spokesperson for the attorney general’s office in New Jersey told the outlet.
In August, Bannon and three others were arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and money laundering in connection to the border fundraiser.
He pleaded not guilty following his arrest and alleged the fraud charges against him were a “political hit job.”
Bannon, a former Breitbart executive chairman, served as chief strategist under the Trump presidency for a short term in 2017 before stepping down less than a year into the administration.
Manhattan Attorney General Cyrus Vance is also reportedly investigating the former president and the Trump Organization for potential financial crimes related to insurance fraud and tax fraud.
Trump has said the investigation into alleged crimes by him or his organization is baseless and would be a “witch hunt.”
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The Washington Examiner contacted GoFundMe and Wells Fargo but did not immediately receive a response.
The New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs and an attorney for Bannon declined to comment to the Washington Examiner.
