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Nevada Man Pleads Guilty to Election Fundraising Scam and Cheating Taxpayers Out of Paycheck Protection Loan Funds
WASHINGTON – James Kyle Bell, 44, of Las Vegas, Nevada, entered a guilty plea today to one count of wire fraud in federal court in the District of Columbia.
Between January 2020 and October 2020, Bell’s two political action committees (PACs), the Keep America Great Committee (“KAGC”) and the Best Days Lie Ahead Committee (“BDLAC”), sent solicitations nationwide to more than 40,000 recipients. The solicitations promised that individual donations would be “5x matched” by Bell’s PACs. However, none of the individual donations was ever “5x matched” by Bell or anyone else. Bell also set up websites to solicit donations with names like “keepamericagreatcommittee.com,” “trump2020maga.com,” and “bestdayslieaheadcommittee.com.” KAGC and BDLAC received no less than $346,000 in contributions from individuals and other groups during the months before the 2020 election.
Court documents also reflect that during the same time period, Bell applied for more than $1.6 million in loans from the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) on behalf of five shell companies that Bell owned and controlled. For example, one of Bell’s companies named “Echo Three LLC,” a company registered in Nevada with no employees and no payroll, received a PPP loan of $485,000 based on Bell’s false statements to the government that the company had 83 employees working at Bell’s private residence.
Bell diverted almost all of the funds from PAC donors and the taxpayer-supported PPP loans to bank accounts where they could be used for Bell’s personal benefit. The government has located and seized $519,000 of Bell’s criminal proceeds. Bell’s plea agreement requires that Bell make full restitution to his victims and agree to the entry of a money judgement of $862,000 against him.
“The First Amendment protects everyone’s right to express and promote their viewpoints by giving to political committees,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips. “My Office and the Justice Department are committed to protecting this important right—citizens are entitled to have confidence that their political contributions will be spent to support the candidates and causes for which they are intended.”
Bell admitted to creating two political action committees that operated during the 2020 election cycle and soliciting donations nationwide, promising a 5x match that was never delivered. He also applied for and received PPP loans for shell companies, diverting funds for his personal benefit.
James Kyle Bell, a 44-year-old resident of Las Vegas, Nevada, has been charged with one count of wire fraud in federal court. Bell faces a restitution of $862,000 and a money judgement of the same amount.
**Mandatory Facts:**
Defendant: James Kyle Bell
Criminal Charges: One count of wire fraud
City and State: Washington D.C.
Exact Date: Not specified
Sentence or Outcome: Plea agreement requires restitution and a money judgement of $862,000
Dollar Amounts: $346,000 in contributions from individuals and other groups, $1.6 million in PPP loans, $519,000 of seized criminal proceeds, and a restitution of $862,000
Key Facts
- State: Washington DC
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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