The Justice Department Accuses SPLC of Misusing Funds to Pay Informants Infiltrating Extremist Groups

Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) was indicted on federal fraud charges on April 21, 2026, for allegedly using donor funds to pay informants who infiltrated extremist groups including the Ku Klux Klan, the United Klans of America, and the National Socialist Party of America.

The Justice Department alleges that SPLC raised millions of dollars under false pretenses, claiming to dismantle violent extremist organizations while secretly financing their leaders through a now-defunct informant program. Between 2014 and 2023, the organization funneled more than $3 million in donated funds to individuals associated with these groups.

Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche stated that SPLC was not dismantling extremist groups but instead manufacturing the extremism it claimed to oppose by paying sources to stoke racial hatred. FBI Director Kash Patel added that the organization lied to donors, vowing to combat hate groups while actually using their money to enrich themselves and conceal deceptive operations from the public.

The indictment includes 11 counts of wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured bank, and conspiracy to commit concealment money laundering. Prosecutors allege some of the funds were used by extremists to carry out state and federal crimes, though specific examples were not included in court papers.

SPLC revealed the existence of a criminal investigation into its informant program shortly before the indictment, stating the program was used to monitor threats of violence and that information was often shared with local and federal law enforcement. The organization said it would vigorously defend itself, its staff, and its work.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Alabama Northern Division filed two forfeiture actions to recover alleged proceeds from the fraud scheme. The Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated the case with assistance from the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation division.