Foreign billionaire used illegal straw donor scheme to purchase pardon from Trump by donating to leading MAGA super PAC

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Law & Crime

Feb 18th, 2026, 7:37 am


A billionaire supporting President Donald Trump allegedly funneled millions of dollars through a "straw donor" scheme, according to a complaint filed by a nonpartisan public interest watchdog.

On Tuesday, the Campaign Legal Center (CLC) submitted a 16-page complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) alleging a Venezuelan billionaire and banker "funneled" $3.5 million to the MAGA Inc. super PAC months before he received a presidential pardon.

The complaint alleges those contributions were made by Isabela Herrera, the daughter of Julio Herrera Velutini, on her father's behalf. The filing adds further grist to the mill by noting that Velutini had recently agreed to a "lenient plea deal" in a political bribery case.

"The available information supports finding reason to believe that Julio Herrera Velutini made, and his daughter Isabela Herrera knowingly permitted her name to be used to make, prohibited foreign contributions in the name of another totaling $3.5 million," the filing reads.

Read more: https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/corrupt-bargain-foreign-billionaire-used-illegal-straw-donor-scheme-to-purchase-pardon-from-trump-by-donating-to-leading-maga-super-pac-federal-complaint-says/

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Full headline: 'Corrupt bargain': Foreign billionaire used illegal 'straw donor' scheme to purchase pardon from Trump by donating to leading MAGA super PAC, federal complaint says

Link to Campaign Legal Center (CLC) SUIT (PDF viewer) - https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/27173079-herrera-complaint-clc/

Link to Campaign Legal Center (CLC) SUIT (PDF) - https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/27173079/herrera-complaint-clc.pdf