FAMOUS CONSERVATIVE THINKER CHARGED WITH FRAUD

CORPORATE CRIME REPORTER

D’Souza Charged with Campaign Finance Fraud

Filed in News January 23rd, 2014 @ 6:21 pm

Dinesh D’Souza,  noted right wing ideologue,  was charged in federal court in Manhattan with violating the federal campaign finance laws by making illegal contributions to a United States Senate campaign in the names of others and causing false statements to be made to the Federal Election Commission in connection with those contributions.

The Federal Election Campaign Act is designed to limit financial influence in the election of candidates for federal office, including the Office of United States Senator, and provides for the public disclosure of the financing of federal election campaigns.

In particular, the Election Act limits the amount and source of money that may be contributed to a federal candidate or that candidate’s authorized campaign committee.

The Election Act specifically prohibits any person from making any contribution in the name of another, including reimbursing a third person, before or after that third person’s contribution, as inducement to make that contribution.

In 2012, the Election Act limited both primary and general election campaign contributions to $2,500 for a total of $5,000 from any individual to any one candidate.

Federal officials alleged that in August 2012, D’Souza directed other individuals with whom he was associated to make contributions to the campaign committee for a candidate for the United States Senate that totaled $20,000.

D’Souza allegedly then reimbursed those individuals for the contributions.

By directing the illegal contributions to be made, D’Souza allegedly also caused the

Campaign Committee to falsely report to the FEC the sources and amounts of those contributions to the campaign.

D’Souza, 52, of San Diego, California, is charged with one count of causing $20,000 in

illegal campaign contributions to be made to a candidate for the United States Senate in calendar

year 2012, which carries a maximum sentence of two years in prison.

He also is charged with one count of causing false statements to be made to the FEC in connection with the illegal campaign contributions, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.