The charges behind President Biden’s fake robocall telling New Hampshire Democrats to stay home on primary day were identified by Granite State authorities on Tuesday.
The bogus calls were traced back to Texas-based Life Corporation and New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella said his office would open a criminal investigation into the fraud.
Formella said that Life Corporation does telecommunications marketing and is under the ownership of a man named Walter Monk.
“We were able to trace the journey of a select group of these phone calls through the telecommunications system,” Formella said at a news conference in Concord.
“We will continue our work to identify and hold accountable all individuals or companies that may be responsible for these acts.”
He did not reveal any potential motive behind the robocall. His office is seeking additional information from “entities not necessarily responsible for the calls” who may have “relevant information.”
President Biden easily cruised to victory despite the fake phone calls. Reuters
About 5,000 to 25,000 Granite State voters are believed to have received bogus calls before the Jan. 23 primary contest.
About 125,000 voters ended up participating in the Democratic primary, in which Biden won handily despite mounting a write-in campaign.
“Tuesday’s vote only allows Republicans in their quest to elect Donald Trump again. Your vote makes a difference in November, not this Tuesday,” an AI version of Biden was reportedly heard saying in the fake call.
The fake robocall comes amid Democratic unrest in New Hampshire. The national party decided to move the first in-state contest to South Carolina, but Granite State Democrats ignored it by complying with state law.
The president ran a complicated write-in campaign and still came out on top. Reuters
As a result, the Democratic National Committee is not expected to allocate delegates in New Hampshire. Biden wants to win the Granite State to avoid embarrassment as an incumbent.
Both Formella’s team and the Federal Communications Commission sent a cease-and-desist letter to Life Corporation, telling the firm to stop “any further conduct” that could be considered illegal.
“Further enforcement action from the FCC remains on the table pending investigation,” he added. “New Hampshire will be co-lead in any civil action taken in addition to any criminal action we may take.”
The Post left a message at Life Corporation seeking comment.
Formella also noted that his office is looking into Texas-based Lingo Telecom, but did not release further details.
The misleading phone calls spoofed the president’s voice in an apparent attempt to trick voters out of the primary. Amanda Sabga/UPI/Shutterstock
“Our message is clear. Law enforcement across the country is united on a bi-partisan basis and ready to work together to combat any attempt to undermine our elections,” Formella warned.
“We will not tolerate any actions that try to undermine the integrity of our elections in our democratic process. The message to any person or company who would try to engage in this activity is clear and simple: don’t try.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
