Monday, June 20, 2022

Domestic Terrorist Couy Griffin; Grifting, Fundraising, and Missing Money

 

NM Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin is arrested for his participation on January 6, 2021, in Washington DC.


Couy Griffin is no stranger to the term Domestic Terrorist. Griffin, a militant anti-masker and founder of Cowboys for Trump (2019), is well known in New Mexico for making threats of violence, among other instances of treasonous rhetoric. In May of 2020, at a Trump rally in Truth or Consequences, NM, Couy declared, "the only good Democrat is a dead Democrat." 


Later, in an almost incomprehensible video, Couy declares that anyone calling themselves African American should "go back to Africa."


By June of 2020, Couy Griffin's activities and social media presence led his ex-wife, Kourtnie Griffin, to file an emergency motion to revisit the custody agreement regarding their son. The motion stated that Couy Griffin "had publically expressed views and opinions which have incited threats of violence" to his ex-wife and child. 

According to the Albuquerque Journal, District judge Mary Rosner ruled to remove all of Griffin's custody rights to their child because he refused to mask his son while making public appearances during a global pandemic, his activities with Cowboys for Trump (often including his son), and his often violent and racist rhetoric. Judge Roson did grant Couy visitation via Facetime.

A quick internet search shows that New Mexico Otero County Commissioner Couy Griffin was a willing participant in the January 6, 2020, insurrection attempt in Washington DC. His own videographer following him that day filmed Griffin climbing over barriers to reach the Capitol building. 


KRQE reported on February 11 that, from his hotel room on January 7, Griffin opined, "We could have had a second amendment rally on those same steps that we had that rally yesterday. And, you know, if we do, is going to be a sad day because there's going to be blood running out of that building." His comments were used later during the second House Impeachment Trial of then-president Donald Trump.
 


Later, at an Otero County Commission meeting, Couy made national headlines when he threatened to return to DC on inauguration day, January 20, 2021, "I've got a .357 Henry Big Boy rifle, lever-action that I've got in the trunk of my car and I've got a .357 single-action revolver, the Colt Ruger Vaquero, that I'll have underneath the front seat on my right side, and I will embrace my second amendment..."

For his participation in the January 6, 2021 insurrection, Griffin was convicted of trespassing and sentenced to 14 days in jail (time served), 60 hours of community service, supervised probation for 1 year, and a $3,000 fine. 

Couy is still making terroristic threats. 



Cowboys for Trump: The Grift

According to a search warrant issued on February 4, 2021, the New Mexico Attorney General began receiving complaints regarding Griffin and activities in October 2020. The complaints ranged from violations of the New Mexico Governmental Conduct Act to accusations of direct and indirect threats of violence. Further, in November 2019, the New Mexico Secretary of State's office determined that Cowboys for Trump (C4T) had "failed to register or report as a political action committee."



In January 2019, a Facebook page titled Cowboys For Trump was created. In the search warrant, investigators found the group described itself as "an attempt to show our president [Trump] that we are behind him and support him."  Interestingly, the investigator stated that the C4T Facebook page had been deleted since the start of their investigation. The report goes on to say that videos, pictures, and posts demonstrate that the group's leader is Griffin. 

In March 2019, Griffin registered Cowboys for Trump with the NMSoS as a Limited Liability political organization. However, in November 2019, the NMSoS sent a letter to Griffin and his sister Kay a letter stating, "...the documentation included in the complaints, the Articles of Incorporation filed with the SoS and your website [cowboysfortrump.org] is evidence that your organization is a political action committee as defined under the CRA [Campaing Reporting Act." 

Griffin disagreed, filing a lawsuit against the SoS on June 18, 2020, in federal court. He claimed that the Campaign Reporting Act violated his first amendment rights. Judge Gregory Fouratt dismissed Griffin's case in December 2021, according to KRQE news

In defiance of the Federal Court and the NMSoS, Griffin has not yet registered his Cowboys for Trump organization as a political action committee as defined in the Campaign Reporting Act. 

The search warrant states that a GoFundMe account was created to help Griffin raise money for his C4T organization. In the image included in the search warrant, it appears the group has raised approximately $30,000.



Further, on the group's now-deleted cowboysfortrump.org website, visitors could donate money via a donation button or through the sales of C4T merchandise. 


When Griffin was arrested for participating in the January 6 Insurrection, a "Couy Griffin Defense Fund" was started and began accepting donations. New Mexico 2022 Secretary of State candidate Audrey Trujillo posted "How to donate" information on a now-deleted Facebook post.


A History of Misuse of Money

In August 2019, Otero county received an invitation from the White House for county commissioners to represent their constituents in DC on September 12, 2019. According to the New Mexico Office of the Attorney General (NMOAG), Griffin approved his own travel request. Then Griffin decided to use this invitation as a sightseeing trip. Griffin towed his horse trailer with his personal pickup truck, both adorned with C4T stickers and banners, first to New York City (200 miles north of Washington DC) and then to DC. 


In May 2021, The Alamogordo Daily News reported that the NMOAG had begun investigating Griffin's expense reimbursements from the commissioner's DC trip. According to his reimbursement request, Griffin tried to be reimbursed $3,237.48 for the 8-day trip he claimed on his request as "Meeting with the President." An audit by Las Cruces accounting firm Kriegel/Gray/Shaw and Co. found that Griffin had misappropriated government funds. 

According to the NMOAG search warrant, Griffin received $3.500 from GB Oliver, Alamogordo Chamber of Commerce Director, to pay back the county for his DC junket.



In another case of misuse of funds, NMOAG investigators state that cowboysfortrump.org stated, "Donations are a huge help to our cause. During our journey, we will incur many costs, the biggest of these being travel...All donated monies will be a direct donation to founder Couy Griffin," and will be used "as Couy sees fit to move this organization further."

In an interview conducted by NMOAG of Couy's ex-wife Kourtnie, she revealed that Couy was obligated by court order to pay $250 per month in child support payments. In July 2020, Kourtnie received a $350 child support payment from Couy from a Cowboys For Trump, LLC account. 


Based on the NMOAG report and the social media accounts of many people, Couy Griffin has collected at least $30,000 in known donations (to C4T org). Adding his defense fund through Well Fargo in Eagle, ID, it is unknown exactly how much money Couy has collected in donations or how that money is spent. 

Couy Griffin is a racist, a liar, and a domestic terrorist. When will he be held accountable for the entirety of his actions?
 


 



1 comment:

  1. Just a correction to your article. Kay Griffin is not a wife (or ex) of Couy, it's his sister.

    ReplyDelete

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