Steve Bannon, a former top adviser to Donald Trump, is set to plead guilty in a New York fraud case tied to a fundraising effort for the U.S.-Mexico border wall, securing a deal that will keep him out of prison.
John F. Carman, Bannon’s defense attorney, confirmed Monday that his client will enter the plea at a court appearance on Tuesday, bringing an end to a legal saga that has shadowed him since Trump’s presidency.
A spokesperson for Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg declined to comment on Monday.
Fraud Scheme and Trump Pardon
Bannon was accused of orchestrating a scheme to defraud donors who contributed to the “We Build The Wall” campaign, a crowdfunding initiative that promised to construct portions of the southern border barrier. While federal prosecutors initially charged him alongside several alleged co-conspirators, Trump granted Bannon a pardon in the final hours of his administration in January 2021, shielding him from federal prosecution.
However, the presidential pardon did not extend to state charges, prompting Bragg’s office to take up the case.
Co-Defendants Sent to Prison
Unlike Bannon, his co-defendants in the federal case were convicted and sentenced to prison. With his guilty plea, Bannon now sidesteps a similar fate, leveraging a deal that spares him incarceration while closing another legal chapter in a turbulent career.
