LOS ANGELES (NEBRASKA EXAMINER) — The organizer of the infamous Los Angeles fundraiser in which U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry was given $30,000 in illegal “conduit” contributions from a foreigner said Monday that he purposely didn’t tell the congressman the money was dirty.
“You didn’t want him to know?” Toufic Baaklini was asked.
“Yes,” replied Baaklini, who was then head of In Defense of Christians, which set up the 2016 fundraiser.
Federal prosecutors objected when Baaklini was asked whether he didn’t tell the congressman because he knew he wouldn’t accept an illegal contribution.
‘You lied?’
Later, though, a defense attorney asked: “You lied to protect him, didn’t you?”
“Yes,” said Baaklini.
The testimony came during the fourth day of the federal trial of Fortenberry, who has represented Nebraska’s 1st Congressional District since 2005. The 61-year-old congressman stands charged with three felonies: two of willfully lying to federal agents and one of trying to conceal the illegal contributions by failing to amend his federal campaign spending report.
Fortenberry has pleaded not guilty, and his attorneys have portrayed the charges as a “setup” and a “failed memory test.”
They maintain that Fortenberry either didn’t hear, didn’t understand, or was distracted when the host of the L.A. fundraiser, in a June 2018 cell phone call, told him at least three times that the contributions came from conduits and “probably” originated from a Nigerian-Lebanese billionaire living in Paris, Gilbert Chagoury.
The cause
FBI agents in 2016 began investigating the activities of Baaklini and Chagoury, who gave $1.3 million to establish In Defense of Christians. Eventually, they learned of the L.A. fundraiser, which was designed as a thank you to Fortenberry for his work on “the cause” — the protection of Christians and other religious minorities in the Middle East.
A few days after the L.A. fundraiser, Baaklini testified that Fortenberry asked him if there were any “problem” with the event. Baaklini said he lied when he responded, “No.”
Prosecutors maintain that Fortenberry repeatedly lied when they questioned him about the fundraiser in two interviews in 2019 and that instead of “disgorging” the illegal funds, he had asked for a second L.A. event in 2018.
They struck a plea deal with Baaklini, who paid a $90,000 fine and agreed to testify in exchange for avoiding a jail sentence.
Trip to Rome
Baaklini, a 60-year-old who fled persecution in Lebanon, described for jurors his relationship with the congressman, a fellow Catholic.
It included frequent email and text exchanges, as well as an invitation from Fortenberry to attend the State of the Union address and to attend a conference in Rome that included a meeting with the pope.
Fortenberry had also invited Chagoury on the August 2016 trip to Rome in conjunction with meetings of the International Catholic Legislative Network, but Chagoury declined.
Among the evidence submitted Monday were photos taken by Baaklini of Fortenberry and his wife meeting the cardinal of Vienna and a photo taken by Fortenberry of Baaklini’s meeting with the pope.
Conflicting testimony
Baaklini gave conflicting testimony about the precise intent of the $30,000 in cash he gave to the host of the L.A. fundraiser, Dr. Elias Ayoub.
Under questioning by defense attorney John Littrell, Baaklini said that the money was “maybe” to be distributed to Fortenberry by Ayoub. When asked later by prosecutor Jamari Buxton, Baaklini said the intent was that Ayoub would find others to distribute the money to Fortenberry at a June 2016 fundraiser hosted by a fellow doctor.
Buxton objected often during the cross-examination of Baaklini, with U.S. District Judge Stanley Blumenfeld often sustaining the objections. At one point, the judge admonished Littrell for raising an issue that should have been raised earlier with the court.
A professional fundraiser who helped set up the 2016 fundraiser also testified Monday morning.
Fundraiser had concerns
Alexandra Kendrick said she had several concerns about the fundraiser because she didn’t know who was giving the donations, because she wasn’t clear how many people might attend and because she had dealt with illegal, “straw man” contributions from a foreigner at a previous fundraiser.
“It was in the back of mind that this could be happening here,” Kendrick said.
“It’s the worst-case scenario,” she said of learning that the contributions were illegal at the previous event. “It’s like a betrayal.”
She said she told Fortenberry of her concerns, but he went ahead with the Feb. 20, 2016, event in Los Angeles.
GOP primary challenger
Fortenberry is fighting for his political life as he faces a tough primary challenge from fellow Republican State Sen. Mike Flood. Flood has picked up endorsements from both Gov. Pete Ricketts and former Gov. Dave Heineman, who fear losing the safe GOP seat in Congress due to Fortenberry’s legal issues.
During Monday’s testimony, Fortenberry sat quietly at the defense table, glancing at testifiers and, at times, writing notes. His wife, Celeste, sat in the audience, along with at least one of the couple’s five daughters.
Nebraska Examiner is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Nebraska Examiner maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Cate Folsom for questions: info@nebraskaexaminer.com. Follow Nebraska Examiner on Facebook and Twitter.
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