According to court documents, a predatory lender and convicted drug dealer from New York who had his 10-year federal prison term reduced by former President Donald Trump in 2021 was taken into custody on assault allegations.
In court documents from Nassau County, Long Island, Jonathan Braun was charged on Tuesday with beating his 75-year-old father-in-law while the man was attempting to shield his wife, the daughter of Braun, from Braun. According to The New York Times, Braun was also charged with abusing the lady last month and once again this week.
According to court documents, Braun was arraigned on three counts of assault on Wednesday and entered a not-guilty plea. He was then released without posting a bond.
In addition, the Times stated that he was charged with petit larceny in Nassau County Supreme Court. This accusation stems from claims that he neglected to pay $160 in bridge tolls while operating a Lamborghini and a Ferrari, both of which are unlicensed.
Judge Jed Rakoff of the Manhattan federal court fined Braun $20 million in February in a civil action in which the Federal Trade Commission had accused Braun of engaging in predatory lending practices.
In a finding that included emails Braun had sent regarding the loans, Rakoff stated, “The evidence demonstrates that Mr. Braun engaged in this unlawful behavior not only directly but also happily and without much regret.”
CNBC has reached out to Marc Fernich, Braun’s attorney, for a response.
Regarding Braun’s apprehension, Karoline Leavitt, a spokesperson for Trump—who is currently the Republican front-runner—stated in a statement that “In contrast to Kamala Harris, who wants to abolish cash bail, President Trump wants offenders to serve their sentences in prison.”
The Democratic nominee for president is Vice President Harris.
Just hours before departing the White House on January 20, 2021, Braun received clemency from Trump for his conspiracy to smuggle marijuana and commit money laundering, for which he had already completed more than five years of his prison sentence.
Because of his criminal conviction, Braun is still subject to supervised release; if a court determines that he broke the terms of his parole, he may be returned to federal prison.
The Times revealed in the fall of last year that Braun’s cooperation agreement with prosecutors to be released from prison in exchange for providing information on other predatory lenders for a criminal investigation was blocked by Trump’s commutation.
The Times has also revealed that Braun’s family initiated the mercy he received from the then-president by leveraging ties to the family of Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, a top White House adviser at the time.