Leader of push to fund Trump's border wall pleads guilty to fraud, tax charges

A decorated U.S. Air Force veteran who helped lead a fundraising campaign to aid the building of former President Donald Trump's promised wall along the U.S.-Mexican border pleaded guilty on Thursday to conspiring to defraud donors and related tax charges.

Federal prosecutors in Manhattan said Brian Kolfage told prospective donors he would "not take a penny" as he raised more than $25 million for the "We Build the Wall" campaign, yet took more than $350,000 and spent money on a boat, a luxury SUV, a golf cart, jewelry and cosmetic surgery.

Kolfage, of Miramar Beach, Florida, led the push alongside former Trump adviser Steve Bannon, who was also charged in August 2020.

U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres dismissed the indictment against Bannon last May after Trump granted him a presidential pardon during the final hours of his presidency.

Kolfage created the private campaign in December 2018, 14 years after losing his legs and right hand in a rocket attack in Iraq.

The wire fraud conspiracy charge carries a maximum 20-year prison term. The tax charges, originally filed in Florida, include filing false tax returns and wire fraud.