The Steady Drip: Southern Poverty Law Center Indicted on Federal Fraud Charges (Connecting the Dots: The Southern Poverty Law Center, The Ku Klux Klan (KKK), Virginia & The Carnegie/Soros Network)

Southern Poverty Law Center Indicted on Federal Fraud Charges (Connecting the Dots: The Southern Poverty Law Center, The Ku Klux Klan (KKK), Virginia & The Carnegie/Soros Network)

Newsmax.com

By Jim Thomas | Tuesday, 21 April 2026 08:25 PM EDT

https://www.newsmax.com/politics/doj-todd-blanche-kash-patel/2026/04/21/id/1253728/

A federal grand jury in Alabama indicted the Southern Poverty Law Center on 11 counts Tuesday, charging the civil rights nonprofit with defrauding donors through a concealed program that paid members of the Ku Klux Klan and other extremist groups, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and FBI Director Kash Patel said.

The case represents the most significant federal prosecution ever brought against a leading civil rights organization.

The indictment, returned in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama, charges the Montgomery, Alabama-based organization with six counts of wire fraud, four counts of making false statements to a federally insured bank, and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Acting U.S. Attorney Kevin P. Davidson signed the charging document.

At a Justice Department news conference, Blanche said prosecutors allege the SPLC paid roughly $3 million between 2014 and 2023 to eight people tied to the Ku Klux Klan, United Klans of America, the National Socialist Party of America, the Aryan Nations-linked Sadistic Souls Motorcycle Club, and America First.

One recipient, described as a leader of the group that organized the 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, was paid about $270,000 over eight years, Blanche said.

"The SPLC was not dismantling these groups," Blanche said. "It was instead manufacturing the extremism it purports to oppose by paying sources to stoke racial hatred."

He said the group never disclosed the informant program to donors, in violation of nonprofit transparency rules.

Prosecutors allege payments moved through at least five sham entities, including Center Investigative Agency, Fox Photography, North West Technologies, Tech Writers Group, and Rare Books Warehouse, before being loaded onto prepaid debit cards.

Patel, in a post on X mirroring his own news conference remarks, said the SPLC "lied to their donors" and paid extremist leaders whose activity in at least one case was "used to facilitate the commission of state and federal offenses." He said individuals remain under investigation.

The indictment names only the organization.

SPLC's interim CEO Bryan Fair disclosed the criminal probe earlier Tuesday. After the indictment was announced, he denied wrongdoing.

He said the program, now discontinued, gathered intelligence on violent groups and was frequently shared with law enforcement, including the FBI.

"We will vigorously defend ourselves, our staff, and our work," Fair said. He tied the program to threats dating to the 1983 firebombing of the SPLC's Montgomery offices.

The case sharpens a clash that escalated last October, when Patel severed FBI ties with the SPLC, calling it a "partisan smear machine." House Republicans held a December hearing accusing the group of coordinating with the Biden administration to target conservatives.

Prosecutors must now prove donor deception and intent. An arraignment date has not been set.

Connecting the Dots:

Julian Bond is a co-founder for Southern Poverty Law Center, a director at the Center for Economic and Policy Research and a director at People for the American Way.

Open Society Foundations was a funder for Center for Economic and Policy Research and the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation.

George Soros is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations and was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for People for the American Way and the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Carnegie Corporation of New York was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank) and a supporter for the American Society for Muslim Advancement.

Ted Lieu was honored with the Carnegie Corporation of New York's Great Immigrants Award, has represented California's 36th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives since 2023 and is a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.

Astrid S. Tuminez was a program officer at the Carnegie Corporation of New York and is the 7th President of the Utah Valley University (Charlie Kirk Shooting).

Andrew Carnegie was the founder of the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Carnegie Corporation of New York was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank) and a supporter for the American Society for Muslim Advancement.

Alfonso Fanjul is a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), the chairman & CEO for the Florida Crystals Corporation, and was a funder for the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation.

Florida Crystals Corporation is a subsidiary of the American Sugar Refining Company.

Jose Pepe Fanjul is the vice chairman & president & COO for the Florida Crystals Corporation, and Chloe Black is his executive assistant.

Chloe Black is Jose Pepe Fanjul’s executive assistant, married to Don Black and was married to David Duke.

Don Black is married to Chloe Black and was the leader of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK).

David Duke was married to Chloe Black, the leader of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) and the founder of the National Association for the Advancement of White People.

Robert C. Byrd was a member of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK), a member of the West Virginia House of Delegates and the West Virginia State Senate.

West Virginia state government is the legislative body for the West Virginia House of Delegates and the West Virginia State Senate.

Patrick Morrisey is the attorney general for the West Virginia state government and was a lobbyist for Sidley Austin LLP.

Barack Obama was an intern at Sidley Austin LLP and the president for the Barack Obama administration.

Michelle Obama was a lawyer at Sidley Austin LLP, the first lady for the Barack Obama administration and an advocate for the ONE Campaign.

Newton N. Minow was a senior counsel at Sidley Austin LLP, a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago and an honorary trustee at the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Carnegie Corporation of New York was a funder for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank) and a supporter for the American Society for Muslim Advancement.

Andrew Carnegie was the founder of the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the founder of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank).

Open Society Foundations was a funder for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank).

George Soros is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations and was the Chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank).

Morton H. Halperin served with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank), is a senior adviser for the Open Society Foundations and a director at the ONE Campaign.

Susan A. Buffett is a director at the ONE Campaign and Warren E. Buffett’s daughter.

Howard G. Buffett is a director at the ONE Campaign and Warren E. Buffett’s son.

Warren E. Buffett is Howard G. Buffett & Susan A. Buffett’s father and an adviser at the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank).

Michael Douglas is a director at the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank) and a friend of George Soros.

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank) was a funder for the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank).

Carnegie Corporation of New York was a funder for the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank), the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank) and a supporter for the American Society for Muslim Advancement.

Ted Lieu was honored with the Carnegie Corporation of New York's Great Immigrants Award, has represented California's 36th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives since 2023 and is a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.

Astrid S. Tuminez was a program officer at the Carnegie Corporation of New York and is the 7th President of the Utah Valley University (Charlie Kirk Shooting).

Andrew Carnegie was the founder of the Carnegie Corporation of New York and the founder of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank).

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank) was a funder for the Nuclear Threat Initiative (think tank).

Open Society Foundations was a funder for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (think tank) and the Center for Economic and Policy Research.

George Soros is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations and was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for People for the American Way and the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Julian Bond is a director at the Center for Economic and Policy Research, a director at People for the American Way and a co-founder for Southern Poverty Law Center.