A fundraiser for city Comptroller John Liu, one of the names often floated as a contender to be the next New York City mayor, was arrested yesterday in the midst of a federal investigation into his campaign fundraising.
Xing Wu Pan, 46, was arrested and charged with attempted wire fraud and conspiracy.
The New York Times reported that many people listed as having donated to Liu did not remember giving money.
This prompted allegations that people might have signed others’ names to donations, so that they could donate more than the legal limit.
Officials say Pan was a bundler for Wu, or a person who gathers contributions from a group of people. He’s accused of funneling illegal contributions to Liu’s campaign.
According to the Times, Pan helped connect a person who wanted to donate $16,000 to Liu, which is more than three times the legal limit.
In a statement he gave to the Times, Liu said, “If it is true then the conduct was clearly wrong and my campaign was not told the truth.”
Follow Alison Bowen on Twitter @AlisonatMetro.
