Shadow of suspicion over Nigel Farage, British media says “the father of Brexit” received financial benefits from a man convicted in the US

The Sunday Times of London reported this Sunday that Nigel Farage, regarded as the architect and driving force behind Brexit and also the leader of the Reform party, has benefited financially from a British citizen convicted by the American justice system for online fraud. According to the newspaper, these benefits were not declared by Farage as part of his entry as a new MP in the British Parliament.

The newspaper writes that George Cottrell, convicted in the United States in 2017 for fraud and an early Farage ally, assisted him with matters related to security and social media. He also made available to him a high-value rental property to stay in. According to the report, Farage was required to declare these benefits received during the 12 months before becoming an MP, as required by law and parliamentary procedures, for amounts of up to £300.

After being elected an MP, Farage registered in Parliament £9,254 covered by Cottrell for a trip to Belgium in April 2024. He later also declared another £15,276, again from the same person, for a domestic flight within America in December 2024. Meanwhile, Farage, whose party ranks slightly ahead of Labour in public opinion polls, is also under investigation in another parliamentary matter linked to a £5 million donation made by a British cryptocurrency investor in 2024, which he had not declared.

Farage’s spokesman rejected the accusations published by The Sunday Times, saying this was not surprising from a newspaper that had supported Labour coming to power in the last parliamentary elections. According to the prestigious British daily, George Cottrell may have an interest in his connection with Farage, as he is seeking a pardon from President Trump for the sentence handed down in America, at a time when the American vice president has met Farage in the United States.

The Sunday Times recalls that in 2016 George Cottrell reached an agreement with American prosecutors by admitting one count of online fraud. He served eight months in prison after offering federal agents, posing as drug traffickers, to launder money for them on the dark web.