Steve Bannon, a former strategist for President Donald Trump, turned himself in to authorities and pleaded not guilty to charges of money laundering and conspiracy on Thursday.
Bannon has been accused of laundering contributions to a fundraiser to build a wall on the southern U.S. border, according to Fox News. He was charged with six counts of money laundering in the second degree, scheme to defraud in the first degree, and conspiracy in the fourth and fifth degrees.
After voluntarily surrendering himself to New York law enforcement, Bannon was perp-walked and paraded through the halls of a Manhattan courthouse. He used the moment to send a message.
“For every conservative in America, this is what happens in the last days of a dying regime. They will never shut me up. They’ll have to kill me first,” Bannon said as he was escorted past members of the media.
Steve Bannon entering courtroom just now for arraignment: “They will never shut me up, they’ll have to kill me first.” pic.twitter.com/j075rpnkWX
— Olivia Rubin (@OliviaRubinABC) September 8, 2022
Bannon, who hosts the “War Room” podcast, condemned the charges against him in a statement.
“Just days after being swatted three different times by deranged thugs from New York City inspired by the Biden Administration to assassinate me by police, the [George] Soros-backed DA has now decided to pursue phony charges against me 60 days before the midterm election because WarRoom is the major source of the MAGA grassroots movement,” he said.
“This is nothing more than a partisan political weaponization of the criminal justice system,” Bannon added.
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“They are coming after all of us, not only President Trump and myself. I am never going to stop fighting. In fact, I have not yet begun to fight. They will have to kill me first.”
According to the indictment against Bannon, the Southern District of New York alleges that Bannon and an unnamed co-conspirator used the “We Build the Wall” fundraiser to funnel money through “various third party entities” to the CEO of the organization, despite the CEO publicly promising that he would not be compensated.
The indictment says “We Build the Wall” garnered over $15 million.
Fox reported that Bannon was released after his court appearance on no cash bail and ordered to surrender his passport.
In a Friday appearance on “The Charlie Kirk Show,” Bannon said there were “thirty-five FBI raids yesterday” on prominent Trump supporters. “The jackbooted Gestapo has got to show up at their door and make a big display of this,” he said.
BOMBSHELL — Steve Bannon broke news that at least 35 Raids were conducted yesterday against Trump allies across the country.
Hear the full conversation by subscribing to The Charlie Kirk Show: https://t.co/aYolqpE7Fm pic.twitter.com/Z7X49riaEL
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) September 9, 2022
He added that The Washington Post reported that there is a grand jury coming together regarding the Capitol incursion.
