Financial records from Steve Bannon's $25million crowd-funding efforts to build a section of the border wall have been subpoenaed by the Manhattan district attorney

 Financial records from Steve Bannon's crowd-funding efforts for 'We Build the Wall' have been subpoenaed by the Manhattan district attorney's office. 

The subpoenas were sent in late January just weeks after former President Donald Trump handed Bannon a pardon for federal conspiracy crimes tied to the border-wall project. 

According to CNN, the grand jury subpoenas were sent to Wells Fargo and GoFundMe, the platform where the $25million was raised for the 'We Build the Wall' project. 


Wells Fargo was one of the financial institutions that handled some of the accounts used during the fundraiser.  

Financial records from Steve Bannon's (pictured in August 2020) crowd-funding efforts for 'We Build the Wall' have been subpoenaed by the Manhattan district attorney's office

Financial records from Steve Bannon's (pictured in August 2020) crowd-funding efforts for 'We Build the Wall' have been subpoenaed by the Manhattan district attorney's office

State charges against Bannon, right, may come under double-jeopardy scrutiny

State charges against Bannon, right, may come under double-jeopardy scrutiny 

A spokesman for GoFundMe told the network that the company 'does not comment on or confirm requests for information from any law enforcement officials' while a spokesman for Wells Fargo declined to comment. 

Bannon, who helped Trump win the 2016 election and briefly served as a White House adviser, was charged by federal prosecutors in Manhattan after he allegedly profited off a scheme to defraud donors to the We Build the Wall fundraising campaign. 

The district attorney's subpoenas are being brought on the state level since a presidential pardon only applies to federal crimes. 


The state grand jury investigation revives the possibility that Bannon, the conservative and outspoken political strategist, could face state criminal charges after shedding the federal case last month.

Bannon, 66, was arrested in August aboard a superyacht owned by Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui and accused with three others of defrauding hundreds of thousands of people as part of a group pledging to use private donations to build a section of the border wall.

He was released on $5million bail, secured by $1.75million in assets and was ultimately the only one of the group to receive the presidential pardon.

The We Build The Wall scheme raised $25million to fund part of the border wall (file image) but prosecutors claimed it was a scam. Bannon was accused of getting $1million in the alleged scheme, spending hundreds of thousands of that on 'expenses'

The We Build The Wall scheme raised $25million to fund part of the border wall (file image) but prosecutors claimed it was a scam. Bannon was accused of getting $1million in the alleged scheme, spending hundreds of thousands of that on 'expenses'

Bannon, now pardoned by Trump, leaves court after 2020 not guilty plea
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The We Build The Wall scheme raised $25million to fund part of the border wall but prosecutors claimed it was a scam: donors' cash was also funneled to its founder Brian Kolfage and to Bannon.

Bannon was accused of getting $1million in the alleged scheme, spending hundreds of thousands of that on 'expenses'.

If state charges are filed against Bannon, they may face scrutiny under double jeopardy laws outlined in the Fifth Amendment of the US Constitution and state laws.

The Manhattan DA previously brought a case against Trump ally Paul Manafort, who was found guilty on eight counts including filing false tax returns, bank fraud, and failing to disclose a foreign bank account.

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance tried to bring state charges for mortgage fraud and other state felonies against Manafort, Trump's former campaign chairman, but they were dismissed by a New York appeals court on double jeopardy grounds.

The court argued that Manafort, who was later pardoned by Trump in December, had already been tried in federal court.

Double jeopardy laws may not apply if charges are filed against Bannon, who had not been convicted at the federal level before his pardon. 

Vance's office began a probe investigating Trump and the Trump Organization for possible tax and insurance fraud in 2019.

New York Attorney General Letitia James is also currently investigating Trump for possible financial crimes.

The New Jersey attorney general's office has also launched a civil inquiry into We Build the Wall. 

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