Kyrsten Sinema paid Tulsi Gabbard's sister over $300K for 'security' assistance

A new report from The Daily Beast is raising questions about an unusual arrangement for personal security between Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) and a company owned by the sister of Tulsi Gabbard.

According to the report, Sinema's campaign finance committees have forked over more than $300,000 to a company called TOA Group LLC whose sole executive is Vrindivan Gabbard Bellord, the sister of the former Hawaii Democratic congresswoman who has since become a far-right Fox News contributor.

"Since fall 2021, Bellord has been employed as the 'security director' in Sinema’s Senate office, a role that has paid her over $50,000, according to Senate records," the publication writes. "Bellord has also apparently been the exclusive security provider to Sinema’s campaign. She appears to have no other clients aside from the Arizona senator."

The report goes on to document the close relationship that Gabbard and Sinema forged while the two began serving in the House of Representatives in 2013. The two women also share a penchant for being willing to go against their party, although Sinema, unlike Gabbard, has not yet parroted talking points that echo Kremlin propaganda.

In January, Raw Story reported that Sinema's campaign spent more than $220,000 on security costs from October to December, including more than $71,000 on a vehicle.

Sinema, who until last year was a Democrat, has been a target for harassments and threats in recent years.

READ MORE: Donald Trump Jr.: Pete Buttigieg only became transportation secretary because 'he's the gay guy'

Saurav Ghosh, an attorney now at the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center, tells The Daily Beast that the amount of money that Sinema's campaign has given to Gabbard's sister is "eye-opening," and he said it's a big "red flag" that Bellord lists Sinema as her only client.