by Atlanta (AP) A political action committee connected to what federal investigators have referred to as a Ponzi scam unlawfully attempted to sway elections, according to Georgia’s Ethics Commission.
According to the complaint, which was submitted on Wednesday, the expenditures were made between 2021 and 2024 by the now-defunct Georgia Republican Assembly PAC.
The committee was led by Edwin Brant Frost V, the son of a man accused of running a scam that defrauded hundreds of investors of at least $140 million in a complaint brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. According to the SEC complaint, Edwin Brant Frost IV embezzled $17 million for himself, his family members, and their linked businesses from First Liberty Building & Loan, a corporation that promised investors large profits by making high-interest loans to enterprises with immediate liquidity requirements.
According to investigators, over $1 million of that was used for political expenditures that strengthened the Frost family’s hold on Republican politics in Georgia, Alabama, Maine, and other states. The disclosure on Wednesday, however, raises concerns about whether the Frosts were spending money on politics in ways that were not declared, even though a lot of political contributions are made public.
while spending over $220,000 to do so, the PAC never registered as an independent committee to directly support or oppose politicians, while being able to lawfully donate to them, according to the complaint.
In a statement, Ethics Commission Executive Director David Emadi said, “The ethics complaint filed today represents our initial charges against the Georgia Republican Assembly-PAC.” We want to vigorously pursue all Georgia law crimes committed by the GRA that unlawfully affected elections in 2022 and 2024, but our investigation is still ongoing and more charges may be forthcoming.
Undisclosed spending is harmful, according to state representative Dale Washburn. The complaint cites a 2022 mailing that criticized the Macon Republican.
Washburn stated, “I think that is a problem and it should be addressed, the whole dark money thing, where you can attack a candidate with a name that really doesn’t represent who is behind the attack.”
Regarding the purported financial scam, no criminal charges have been made public. The SEC filed a civil complaint, but Brant Frost V was not named. But in a subpoena sent this week, the SEC sought information regarding Brant Frost V’s actions while working for First Liberty. Some investors claimed to have dealt with Brant Frost V when they invested in First Liberty, and the younger Frost appeared on conservative talk shows endorsing the company.
When the younger Frost established Heartland Capital LLC, a new lending company, he also attracted notice. The day before First Liberty declared its bankruptcy, on June 26, Brant Frost V filed the incorporation documents.
An email and a text message sent on Wednesday were not immediately answered by Brant Frost V. An email was not answered by Brant Frost IV’s attorney.
Conflict with another political group
The Georgia Republican Assembly, an organization that aims to move the Republican Party even further to the right, shares the same name as the PAC. Insurgent Republicans who fought established GOP leaders were frequently endorsed by the assembly and supported by the PAC. However, Nathaniel Darnell, the president of the assembly, stated that although the GRA approved and supported the PAC, it was an entirely different organization.
According to Darnell, who claimed to have lost an undisclosed sum of money invested in First Liberty, the Frosts had complete authority over the PAC during its existence with no supervision from the GRA group.
The Frosts and the GRA had a falling out after the state Republican conference this year. Following the GRA’s expulsion of Brant Frost V’s sister, Katie Frost, they openly resigned along with other supporters of Georgia GOPChairman Josh McKoon. A nominating committee headed by Katie Frost suggested that delegates vote against some party officer candidates who had received GRA endorsements.
According to campaign reports, the majority of the PAC’s funding came from donations made by the Frosts and related businesses. Supporting Republican opponents of the late state House Speaker David Ralston, whom the GRA considered a corrupt moderate, was one area of concentration. However, the complaint reveals that the PAC failed to record expenditures in a county commissioner campaign in nearby Meriwether County and school board races in Coweta County, where the Frosts reside.
According to Washburn, he feels singled out because he backed Ralston and a plan that would have permitted some foreigners to attend Georgia colleges and universities and pay in-state tuition.
According to him, I was rather surprised by those mailings when they appeared and was genuinely incensed by them since I believed they were extremely dishonest and distorted a few facts.
