*Shaun King has responded to criticism that he used donor funds to purchase a thoroughbred show dog worth $40k.
As we reported previously, via the Washington Free Beacon, King’s Grassroots Law PAC “paid roughly $40,000 since December to the California-based Potrero Performance Dogs, according to campaign finance disclosures,” the outlet writes. The payments are labeled “contractor services.”
Shortly after giving the organization $30,650 in February, King became the owner of an award-winning mastiff bred by Potrero named Marz. In a now-deleted post on Facebook, King noted that he had welcomed a “new member of the King family” but he allegedly returned the dog because it had “too much energy,” according to a report Monday, per the New York Post.
King’s post said Marz would provide “alertness and protection” for his family, according to the Free Beacon.
READ MORE: Shaun King Catching Heat for Using Donor Funds to Buy Show Dog Worth $40k
Amid the criticism, King shared a lengthy post on Facebook explaining that he purchased the dog to protect his family after the New York Post published his home address, prompting violent white supremacists to turn up at the residence.
In the post, King wrote, in part:
We purchased Marz to help protect our family at home because literal white supremacists have been coming to our home, on our property. Some even tried to sneak up our backyard before being spotted. You have no idea the terror that this caused my family. All of this exploded after the @NYPost published our home online. They knew this would happen.
With death threats coming to me daily, and literal white supremacists that I caught and helped convict being let out of prison, Marz was purchased to roam our property and roam our home and even protect us on the road.
Our organization, @GrassrootsLaw, which covers all of my security costs, helped purchase Marz to protect me at home. Compared to what 24/7 human security costs, Marz was affordable. We made sure that the purchase was legal and compliant before making it.
But soon after purchasing Marz, we found that as great as he was, that he was not a perfect fit for our family. And with so many kids and guests in our home, we needed a perfect fit.
So I traveled across the country and returned Marz to his owners, who’ve become my personal friends. This was months ago.
I don’t regret it even a little bit.
King has repeatedly faced scrutiny over his fundraising efforts and has denied allegations of fraud and mishandling donation funds. In 2019, he gave a “team of experts” an “unfettered look at his finances” and the $34.5 million he raised for the Black Lives Matter movement, according to Medium.
“In short, we find absolutely no evidence that Shaun has ever inappropriately accessed any funds that he has raised,” the Shaun King Financial Review Board wrote.
“We searched and we asked. Not one single family, charity, cause or campaign said Shaun was ever compensated, directly, or indirectly, for his online fundraising.”
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