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Republican strategist and former congressional campaign manager Anton Lazzaro was recently arrested by federal law enforcement on August 12 and charged with underage sex trafficking.
Lazzaro faces five counts of sex trafficking of a minor and three counts of obstruction of justice. The FBI arrested Lazzaro on Thursday morning. The same day the indictment was unsealed in federal court during his appearance in St. Paul, Minnesota.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Becky R. Thorson ordered Lazzaro to be jailed until his court hearing next week. Prosecutors claimed that six victims asked for extra protection from Lazzaro. Thorson stated that it is their strong wish that the United States proceed with a recommendation of detention.
Lazzaro is accused of recruiting five underage victims for paid sex between May and December 2020. He attempted to entice a sixth. The indictment says that he even interfered with the investigation as it closed in on him.
The second person under investigation in the matter is 19-year-old Gisela Castro Medina. She has also been arrested on the same charges as Lazzaro. She has also been labeled a "fugitive from justice." A picture was reportedly posted to Instagram in May that shows Anton Lazzaro and Gisela Castro Medina together at an event.
Who is Anton Lazzaro?
Lazzaro is well-known for showing off his wealthy lifestyle on social media. Pictures show him aboard private jets, driving topless in sports cars, and bragging about making bets in Las Vegas while holding a huge amount of cash.
He has been a GOP donor for a long time, but his donations have increased since 2016. State campaign finance data shows that he made a lot of donations to Minnesota Republicans in 2020. The amount is worth tens of thousands of dollars.
Lazzaro’s website says that he is the founder of the Big Tent Republicans PAC group that aims to "redefine the Republican Party mainly to minorities, LGBT, and women who have been misinformed by the Democratic Party."
The 30-year-old’s homepage features pictures where Lazzaro can be seen with Donald Trump and former Vice President Mike Pence. He is the founder of Gold River Group, a marketing and technology firm registered in Wyoming. It even mentions that Lazzaro ran digital operations for various Republican political campaigns in California and Minnesota.
Lazzaro worked as a campaign manager for GOP Congressional candidate Lacy Johnson and unsuccessfully ran to unseat Democrat Rep. Ilhan Omar. He studied at Brigham Young University in Idaho and is a resident of Minneapolis, Minnesota.
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