Steve Bannon, a longtime ally of former President Trump, expects to be charged in a state criminal case in New York City. Bannon, 68, plans to turn himself in on Thursday, the Associated Press reports. The Washington Post, citing anonymous sources, reported that the state criminal case would resemble an earlier attempted federal prosecution, in which Bannon was accused of duping donors who gave money to fund a wall on the U.S. southern border. That federal case ended abruptly when Trump pardoned Bannon. Bannon said District Attorney Alvin Bragg “has now decided to pursue phony charges against me 60 days before the midterm election,” accusing the Democratic prosecutor of targeting him because he and his radio show are popular among Trump’s Republican supporters.
Federal agents pulled Bannon from a luxury yacht off the Connecticut coast and arrested him on charges he pocketed more than $1 million in wall donations. Bannon, who had pleaded not guilty, was dropped from the federal case when Trump pardoned him on his last day in office in January 2021. Two other men involved in the “We Build the Wall” project pleaded guilty in April. They will be sentenced in December. A third defendant’s case ended in a mistrial in June after jurors said they could not reach a unanimous verdict. A president can issue pardons only for federal crimes, not state offenses.
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