Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
The Israeli Walla! website: We are running out of stockpiles, our forces are exhausted, and the lives of the captives are in danger. It is time for a ceasefire deal in Gaza.
Several wounded in an Israeli bombardment of a tent in al-Mawasi, south of Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli media: Three wounded, three killed in an ongoing operation in the Gaza Strip.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in southern Lebanon: Israeli artillery shelling targets the outskirts of the town of Shebaa
Al-Qassam Brigades: The targeting took place at the intersection of 'Street 5' with the western line north of Khan Younis
Al-Qassam Brigades: A NIMR armored personnel carrier carrying an Israeli soldier was targeted with an Al-Yassin missile north of Khan Younis
Israeli media: At least two soldiers killed by anti-tank missile fired at Israeli army forces in the Gaza Strip
Local Syrian sources: Mortar shells fell on more than nine villages in the Sweida countryside
Local Syrian sources: Dozens of dead and wounded have arrived at Sweida hospitals as a result of ongoing clashes at several locations in the western Sweida countryside
Local sources: Civilians, including children and women, were injured in the al-Maqous neighborhood of Sweida, in Syria, as a result of ongoing clashes

Trump inauguration official accused of embezzling Ohio disaster funds

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: The Intercept
  • 19 Jan 2025 22:49
  • 2 Shares
3 Min Read

Pat Lee, a Republican operative, will never be able to fundraise for charity in Ohio again.

Listen
  • x
  • Trump Inauguration official accused of misusing disaster funds
    Debris from a Norfolk Southern freight train lies scattered and burning along the tracks, on February 4, 2023. (AP)

To assist in preparation for the inauguration, President-elect Donald Trump's team hired a man who was on the board of a nonprofit accused by the Ohio attorney general of embezzling funds intended for victims of the Norfolk Southern train catastrophe in East Palestine, Ohio, The Intercept reported.

Patrick Lee, the inaugural committee's deputy director and public liaison, was on the board of the Ohio Clean Water Fund, an LLC founded in Ohio days after the train crashed in February 2023. 

Trump's visit to East Palestine became a focal point in his presidential campaign. The Ohio Clean Water Fund, claiming to represent the Second Harvest Food Bank, raised over $141,000 for families affected by the East Palestine disaster. However, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost's office later described the collaboration as fraudulent, with the food bank denying any connection.

Despite this, the Ohio Clean Water Fund sent the food bank $10,000 while keeping the remaining $131,000, according to the attorney general's office.

Yost subsequently described the Ohio Clean Water Fund as a "sham charity", saying it "must turn over more than $131,000 in pocketed donations so the money truly does benefit East Palestine."

A lawyer for Lee denied the allegations, stating that the payment made by Lee's organization was not an admission of guilt. Lee, not officially named as a defendant, did not address his involvement with the Ohio Clean Water Fund, which shared an address with his Virginia home.

Related News

Trump to make historic second UK State visit at King's invitation

EU rallies allies as Trump tariff threats push trade tensions higher

In a settlement with Ohio Attorney General Yost, Lee and the Ohio Clean Water Fund agreed to pay a six-figure reparation and were restricted from certain philanthropic activities in Ohio in exchange for dropping the accusations against them.

Yost’s lawsuit revealed that the "charity" had pocketed at least $131,000 of the donated funds while sending only $10,000 to the food bank.

The East Palestine train crash became a major political issue in the 2024 presidential race, with Trump's team emphasizing his visit to the catastrophe scene while comparing it with Biden's absence.

Since the June 2023 settlement, LCM Strategies has received payments from Ohio Republican state representatives Justin Pizzulli and Adam Mathews, who told The Intercept he was not familiar with Lee, the fund, or details of misuse, pointing out that LCM was engaged as a subcontractor rather than directly by his campaign.

While FEC records show that neither Trump's campaign nor the Republican National Committee explicitly recruited Lee during the 2024 campaign season, past reports and sources corroborate his involvement as a former deputy director of public interaction for Trump's inauguration committee.

Lee was not the only political figure connected to the alleged "sham charity".

Mike Peppel, founder of the Ohio Clean Water Fund, previously worked for Republican Congressman Mike Rulli. In August, Peppel settled with Yost, agreeing to pay reparations and cease some charitable activities to avoid litigation. Reports later indicated that Rulli had rehired Peppel, and Rulli's campaign had worked with Lee's firm, LCM Strategies, in 2021 and 2022.

  • Ohio
  • Ohio derailment
  • Donald Trump
  • US President Donald Trump
  • United States

Most Read

Hezbollah SG reveals war details on Al Mayadeen for the first time

Hezbollah SG reveals war details on Al Mayadeen for the first time

  • Politics
  • 8 Jul 2025
Major ambush in Gaza kills 6 Israeli troops, injures dozens

Major ambush in Gaza kills 5 Israeli troops, injures 14

  • Politics
  • 8 Jul 2025
Israeli soldiers are seen in Beit Hanoun ahead of an operation by the al-Qassam Brigades, undated (Al-Qassam Brigades Military Media)

'Israel' on blast as media exposes report discrepancies in Gaza ambush

  • Palestine
  • 8 Jul 2025
Yemen Navy sinks ETERNITY C ship, shares footage of operation

Yemen Navy sinks ETERNITY C ship, shares footage of operation

  • Politics
  • 9 Jul 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
The Freedom Flotilla ship Handala as it departs for Gaza, where it aims to break the maritime blockade at a port in Syracuse, Sicily in southern Italy on July 13, 2025. (AFP)
Palestine

Freedom Flotilla's Handala departs Sicily in bid to break Gaza siege

The container ship CMA CGM Laperouse, left, docks at the Georgia Ports Authority's Port of Savannah, Sept. 29, 2021, in Savannah, Ga (AP)
Politics

US shipbuilding woes deepen as tariffs, outdated policies backfire

Gaza war raises ethical questions for ex-Obama, Biden officials
Politics

Mercenary firm tied to Gaza war crimes hires Obama-Biden PR operatives

'Israel' targets children in Gaza collecting water
Palestine

'Israel' strikes Gaza kids fetching water, blames it on 'malfunction'

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS