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The Department of Justice indicted the Southern Poverty Law Center [SPLC] Tuesday on federal fraud charges alleging the organization improperly raised millions of dollars which it covertly paid to individuals associated with the Ku Klux Klan and other extremist groups.
“Between 2014 and 2023, the SPLC secretly funneled more than $3 million in donated funds to individuals who were associated with various violent extremist groups including the Ku Klux Klan, Aryan Nations, and National Socialist Party of America,” a DOJ press release said.
“The SPLC is manufacturing racism to justify its existence,” acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said. “Using donor money to allegedly profit off Klansmen cannot go unchecked. This Department of Justice will hold the SPLC and every other fraudulent organization operating with the same deceptive playbook accountable. No entity is above the law.”
Blanche held a news conference with FBI Director Kash Patel on Tuesday where they discussed the charges in the indictment:
“The SPLC allegedly engaged in a massive fraud operation to deceive their donors, enrich themselves, and hide their deceptive operations from the public,” Patel said. “They lied to their donors, vowing to dismantle violent extremist groups, and actually turned around and paid the leaders of these very extremist groups – even utilizing the funds to have these groups facilitate the commission of state and federal crimes. That is illegal – and this is an ongoing investigation against all individuals involved.”
According to the press release, the indictment alleges that:
Between 2014 and 2023, the SPLC secretly funneled more than $3 million in donated funds to individuals who were associated with various violent extremist groups including:
- Ku Klux Klan
- United Klans of America
- Unite the Right
- National Alliance
- National Socialist Movement
- Aryan Nations affiliated Sadistic Souls Motorcycle Club
- National Socialist Party of America (American Nazi Party)
- American Front
The first page of the indictment detailed the allegations:
Allegedly, the SPLC did not inform donors that their funds were being funneled to these “extremist” groups. Instead, the indictment alleges the SPLC used methods to conceal where the money was actually going.
“According to the indictment, the objective of the scheme and artifice was to obtain money via donations through materially false representations and omissions about what the donated funds would be used for,” the press release said. “In order to covertly pay the individuals, the SPLC opened bank accounts connected to a series of fictitious entities. The covert nature of the accounts allowed the SPLC to disguise the true nature, source, ownership, and control of the fraudulently obtained donated money the SPLC paid the individuals. In order to keep the scheme going, the SPLC made a series of false statements related to the operation of the accounts.”
Alex Jones issued a special report breaking down the developments:
The internet reacted with memes pointing out the irony:
