2023-05-25 15:30:54
NEW YORK. Steve Bannon, the conservative strategist and longtime ally of Donald Trump, will stand trial in May next year on charges of misleading donors who gave money to build a wall along the US-Mexico border, a judge said Thursday. .
Bannon’s trial in the “We Build the Wall” case will begin on May 27, 2024, just following former President Trump appears in the same Manhattan courthouse in an unrelated criminal case.
Accusation once morest Bannon
Bannon, 69, pleaded not guilty last September following being indicted on state money laundering, conspiracy, fraud and other charges. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg took up the case following Bannon’s federal prosecution was halted thanks to a Trump pardon. Presidential pardons apply only to federal crimes, not state crimes.
Bannon was accused of falsely promising donors that all money given to the campaign would go toward building a wall along the southern border of the United States. Instead, prosecutors allege that Bannon and others involved in the project used the money to enrich themselves.
Brian Kolfage and Andrew Badolato pleaded guilty to federal charges and were sentenced to prison terms. A third defendant, Timothy Shea, was convicted in October and is scheduled for sentencing next month.
Judge Juan Manuel Merchan presides over the Bannon and Trump cases. Bannon is free pending his trial. Thursday’s hearing lasted just four minutes. “See you here in May,” Bannon said as he drove out of the courthouse in a black pickup truck.
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