Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) is under investigation for possible fraud.
The first-term Colorado Republican allegedly inflated her mileage totals in 2020 and then used more than $20,000 in campaign reimbursements to pay off years worth of tax liens on her restaurant, and state officials confirmed the matter had been forwarded to an interagency group for investigation, reported the New York Times.
“Utilizing an illegal source of funds or ill-gotten funds to pay off a tax lien is illegal in Colorado and under federal law,” reads a complaint sent to the Colorado attorney general's office by the the American Muckrakers PAC. “That is the very definition of ill-gotten funds.”
The allegations against Boebert were first reported in February 2021, claiming that Boebert had cashed two checks from her campaign totaling $22,259 for mileage reimbursement, but that figure worked out to 38,712 miles -- which is significantly further than the planet's 24,901-mile circumference.
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“Colorado deserves more than an irresponsible, loudmouth member of Congress,” said David Wheeler, the PAC’s president. “Maybe it’s time for Boebert to look for another line of work.”
The American Muckrackers PAC was also behind a stream of damaging information released about Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-NC) in the weeks ahead of his Republican primary election defeat, but Wheeler said the complaint was filed after previous complaints to the Federal Election Commission stalled, and the House Ethics Committee declined to say whether the issue was under investigation.
“This is not an attack on Lauren Boebert,” Wheeler said. “Had Rep. Boebert paid her restaurant staff properly and also paid the unemployment premiums to the State of Colorado, an investigation never would have been necessary.”
Boebert's campaign later amended the mileage reimbursement to include travel expenses and hotel rooms, but the new filing still shows $17,280 in mileage reimbursements.