Kobach silent as former We Build the Wall associates sentenced to prison for defrauding donors

Two former leaders of We Build the Wall, where Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach was the top lawyer, have been sentenced to prison for defrauding hundreds of thousands of donors to the non-profit effort to build strips of privately-funded wall along the southern border.

A federal judge on Wednesday sentenced Brian Kolfage, the group’s founder, to 51 months in prison and Andrew Badolato to 36 months in prison. The sentence was the latest in a long-running quest by federal and New York state prosecutors to hold We Build the Wall and its leaders accountable for what they say was a scheme to divert donations for personal uses.

Steve Bannon, a former adviser to former President Donald Trump who was involved with the group, has been charged by New York prosecutors and is awaiting trial after Trump pardoned him before leaving office, shielding Bannon from the federal charges he faced at the time. Bannon has pleaded not guilty. We Build the Wall itself has also been charged in state court.

Spokespeople for Kobach didn’t respond to request for comments Wednesday and Thursday.

In addition to serving as We Build the Wall’s general counsel, Kobach was also on its board of directors. He resigned in early September, after New York prosecutors indicted Bannon and the organization. Florida business records at the time Kobach left showed he was on the board with Kolfage and Amanda Shea, the wife of Timothy Shea.

At the time, Kobach said he remained on the board to assist with an “orderly shut down” of the organization.

Kobach has not been accused of wrongdoing. But the sentences against Kolfage and Badolato underscore the number of people formerly in the orbit of the Kansas attorney general, the state’s top law enforcement officer, who have been either charged with or convicted of crimes.

In addition to Kolfage and Badolato, federal prosecutors have also secured a conviction of Timothy Shea, a former partner of Kolfage. And Trump, who Kobach has said he advised on immigration, has been indicted in New York on allegations of falsifying business records related to hush money to a porn star, and remains under investigation over his efforts related to overturning the 2020 presidential election and his handling of classified documents after leaving office.

We Build the Wall formed in late 2018 after Kolfage, a U.S. Air Force veteran of Iraq, initially raised money for a wall through a GoFundMe page. Kolfage was charged federally with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Kolfage pleaded guilty in April.

Federal prosecutors alleged Kolfage covertly used more than $350,000 in donations for his personal use. Bannon was also accused of using We Build the Wall funds to cover personal expenses. The two men, along with Badolato and Shea, were accused of concealing payments to Kolfage by routing them through a nonprofit and shell company controlled by Shea.

Shea’s first trial ended in a mistrial in June but he was later convicted of obstruction of justice last fall. Kobach has previously said he was on the witness list for both the prosecution and defense in Shea’s mistrial.