Wayne LaPierre illegally failed to disclose that he had vacationed on sleek 108-foot yachts in the Bahamas while leading the National Rifle Association, New York state lawyers alleged at the start of his corruption trial Monday.
During his three-decade tenure as the powerful leader of the gun rights group, LaPierre allegedly spent time aboard two yachts, known as “Illusions” and “Grand Illusion,” on trips paid for by owners David and Laura McKenzie. . an advertising agency on which the NRA spent hundreds of millions of dollars.
But LaPierre, 74, did not mention the forays into the nonprofit’s annual filings, which require disclosure of any gift from a vendor worth more than $250, Attorney General Letitia James’ office said. .
“The NRA allowed Wayne LaPierre and his NRA think tank… to operate the NRA as ‘Wayne’s World’ for decades,” State Attorney Monica Connell argued in opening statements in what is expected to be a trial. six weeks in Manhattan Supreme Court.
The lawsuit seeks to prevent Wayne LaPierre from rejoining the NRA in a leadership role. He could also be ordered to pay compensation. AP
LaPierre, who announced Friday that he would resign from his post at the end of the month, also showered bonuses on loyalists on the group’s board of directors and gave former NRA top brass cozy talks and “consulting” jobs in exchange for to look towards each other. in his shady spending, the prosecution alleged.
James’ office is seeking an order barring LaPierre from returning to the NRA and for an independent monitor to be appointed to oversee the gun rights group’s finances.
He could also be ordered to pay millions in damages.
LaPierre, 74, did not mention the forays into the nonprofit’s annual filings, which require disclosure of any gift from a vendor worth more than $250. fake images
LaPierre sat calmly in a black suit and blue tie in the front row of the courtroom gallery while Connell spoke for more than an hour.
His defense attorney plans to make his opening statement to the six jurors and six alternates in the case Tuesday morning.
Another NRA executive, Joshua Powell, reached a last-minute deal with James’ office on the eve of the trial, agreeing to pay $100,000 and admitting to misusing charitable funds.
The case takes place in New York because the NRA, whose original goal, according to one of its founders, was “to promote and encourage rifle shooting on a scientific basis,” was founded in the Empire State in 1871.
LaPierre is expected to testify during a six-week trial in Manhattan Supreme Court. AP
The group has since been registered with the state as a nonprofit, even as its reach has grown to argue against gun control nationwide.
The NRA has advocated against banning assault weapons even after killers used semi-automatic weapons to murder people at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, high schools in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Parkland , Florida, a concert in Las Vegas, an LGBTQ nightclub in Orlando, Florida and elsewhere in the country.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn