Roy Boulos, age 52, of Las Vegas is one of eight individuals being named in an unsealed indictment, charged by the Justice Department for conspiring to make and conceal excessive campaign contributions during the 2016 presidential election. The contributors schemed to gain influence with political leaders of both parties. Experienced Las Vegas criminal defense attorneys say that contribution schemes like this are common during more publicized election cycles.
Why Is This Case of Importance?
This particular case has gained national attention due to the fact that one of those being indicted, George Nadar, was a major donor to Hillary Clinton’s campaign and is also a witness in the ongoing Robert Mueller investigation regarding Russian meddling in the 2016 elections.
Another nearby individual indicted is Ahmad Khawaja of Los Angeles, who was allegedly conspiring alongside Nader to conceal the source of $3.5 million in campaign donations.
How Is the Las Vegas Man Connected to the Contributions in Question?
As for Roy Boulos, he owns “Roy’s Wine and Cigars” in Summerlin and is being accused of conspiring with Khawaja and others to make contributions through conduits to conceal excessive contributions. Roy and his wife have declined comments and referred reporters to their attorney, David Chesnoff. Chesnoff is a nationally known criminal defense lawyer; he also did not return requests for comments.
Boulos was an active donor to various political candidates, parties, and committees, according to Federal Election Commission records. In addition to local donations, Boulos gave over $300,000 to the Hillary Victory Fund. After the 2016 election, he gave over $135,000 to the Republican National Committee (he was a registered Republican.)
The indictment charges the group of 8 individuals with concealing $1.8 million in excessive campaign contributions between 2016 and 2018 as well as lying to the FBI and obstructing a grand jury investigation.
Donors Sought Privilege Through Donations
The donations were meant to help the individuals gain access and privilege to the winning candidate. For example, Khawaja received an Oval Office reception with Trump after his inauguration. Nadar was a frequent White House guest and had ties to the UAE’s crown prince.
As for Boulos, his privilege is unreported at this time. However, it would do him some good to distance himself from the rest of the members of this group. Especially considering Nadar is currently in federal custody on child pornography charges.
