Two organizers of a private fundraising campaign to build a border wall between the United States and Mexico pleaded guilty to fraud on Thursday.
Brian Kolfage, 39, and Andrew Badolato, 57, both Florida residents, were accused of pocketing hundreds of thousands of dollars in donor funds from an online crowdfunding campaign called “We Build the Wall,” which raised more than $25 million.
Both men pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud before U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres. Kolfage also pleaded guilty to tax and wire fraud charges filed in Florida.
Kolfage, who assured donors that he would “not take a penny in salary or compensation,” used more than $350,000 in donor funds for personal use, prosecutors said. Kolfage and his co-conspirators created fake invoices and “vendor” arrangements, according to a release by the Department of Justice.
‘WE BUILD THE WALL’ ORGANIZER TO PLEAD GUILTY TO TAX AND WIRE FRAUD CHARGES
The fundraising campaign was first established by Kolfage, a double amputee Air Force veteran, alongside Badolato, former Trump adviser Steve Bannon, and Timothy Shea to follow through on a 2016 Trump campaign promise to build a border wall.
Bannon, who was indicted in connection with orchestrating the campaign, had pleaded not guilty but was pardoned by Donald Trump before the former president left office.
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Kolfage and Badolato each face up to a maximum of 20 years for the wire fraud charge. The two are set to be sentenced on Sept. 6, 2022.
