Three individuals, including two California men, have been charged with operating two fraudulent political action committees, collecting $3.5 million in donations.
Matthew Nelson Tunstall, 34, of Los Angeles, California; Robert Reyes, Jr., 38, of Hollister, California; and Kyle George Davies, 29, of Austin, Texas, were indicted by a federal grand jury in Austin, Texas, for their alleged involvement in a scheme to operate two fraudulent political action committees (PACs) during the 2016 federal election cycle.
The indictment was unsealed on November 3, after being returned on November 2.
As alleged in the indictment, the defendants solicited contributions to Liberty Action Group PAC and Progressive Priorities PAC under the guise that the PACs were affiliated with or meaningfully supporting specified candidates for public office.
Between January 2016 and April 2017, the defendants obtained approximately $3.5 million from unwitting donors based on false and misleading representations and used those funds to enrich themselves and to pay for additional fraudulent advertisements soliciting donations.
Tunstall and Reyes are also alleged to have laundered more than $350,000 in illegal proceeds from the scheme through a third-party vendor to conceal the use of those funds for their own benefit.
Tunstall and Reyes are both charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and to make a false statement to the Federal Election Commission (FEC), multiple counts of wire fraud, and multiple counts of money laundering.
Davies is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and to make a false statement to the FEC, and multiple counts of wire fraud.
Tunstall made his initial appearance on November 3 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California; Reyes and Davies will make their initial appearances on November 3 in the U.S. District Courts for the Northern District of California and the Western District of Texas, respectively.
If convicted of all counts, Tunstall and Reyes both face a maximum total penalty of 125 years in prison. If convicted of all counts, Davies faces a maximum total penalty of 65 years in prison.
A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI’s San Antonio Division, Austin Resident Agency.
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. and Special Agent in Charge Christopher Combs made the announcement.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Key Facts
- State: California
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
ðŸâ€Â’ Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
US NewsUS NewsUS NewsUS News