“We Push for Peace” Stole $6.5 Million. The Director Flew to Vegas. The Community Got Nothing.
- $6.5M total allegedly stolen from We Push for Peace, a state-funded violence-interruption nonprofit — MN AG civil complaint
- $6M+ personally pocketed by director Trahern Pollard — Vegas trips, luxury cars, Harley-Davidson, spa stores — MN AG civil complaint
- $1,000/week recurring transfers from charity funds to treasurer Jaclyn McGuigan's personal bank account — MN AG civil complaint
- Days after the MN AG began asking questions, Pollard incorporated a fake 'for-profit arm' called Change Makers to drain remaining funds — MN AG civil complaint
We Push for Peace was a Minnesota nonprofit holding lucrative government contracts for violence interruption and community outreach in some of Minneapolis’s most dangerous neighborhoods. It collapsed after its leaders allegedly spent $6.5 million of charitable funds on Las Vegas trips, luxury vehicles, Harley-Davidson shopping sprees, spa stores, and a private liquor store.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison (D) filed a civil lawsuit against former directors Trahern Pollard and Jaclyn McGuigan. The timing made it worse: the charity was being called on to help its community during a wave of ICE immigration enforcement activity in Minnesota. The organization had no money left.
According to the AG complaint, Pollard personally controlled more than $6 million of the diverted funds. The spending pattern was brazen: chartered flights to Las Vegas, luxury vehicles, Harley-Davidson showroom purchases, spa store tabs, and large cash withdrawals with no documentation. Pollard was not a subtle thief.
McGuigan, the charity’s treasurer, allegedly ran a simpler scheme: $1,000 per week, every week, transferred from the nonprofit’s accounts to her personal bank account. She also stole government grant funds she labeled as “administrative” expenses. The complaint alleges she stole thousands more through this mechanism.
When the Minnesota AG’s office began asking questions, Pollard did not stop. He incorporated two new entities:
1. A fake “for-profit arm” of the charity — created within days of the AG inquiry — designed to drain the nonprofit’s remaining revenue streams.
2. “Change Makers” — a second new corporation used to redirect lucrative community liaison contracts (including a deal with Whole Foods) away from the charity and into his privately-held company.
The AG complaint calls this a deliberate effort to strip the nonprofit of all remaining assets once scrutiny began.
We Push for Peace held contracts for violence interruption — a model where community members are paid to mediate conflicts, work with at-risk youth, and interrupt cycles of retaliation before they escalate into shootings. The model requires trust between the organization and the community it serves. Pollard and McGuigan destroyed that trust.
The Breitbart report that surfaced this story noted the tragic timing: as ICE immigration enforcement operations increased in Minnesota in early 2026, the charity was one of the organizations community members looked to for help. It was broke. The money had gone to Vegas.
“Rampant abuse and blatant self-dealing drove this organization into the ground.”
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison (D) — civil complaint, announced May 2026
Governor: Tim Walz (D) — the 2024 Democratic vice-presidential nominee, currently serving his second term. Minneapolis is one of the most Democratic cities in the United States; the region has received significant state and federal funding for violence-prevention programs since the George Floyd protests and subsequent police reforms of 2020.
Attorney General Keith Ellison (D)is pursuing the civil case. This is not a partisan prosecution — Ellison is a Democrat filing against organizations that received Democratic-aligned government contracts. The AG’s office deserves credit for bringing the suit. The system that funded We Push for Peace for years without adequate oversight deserves scrutiny.