Guns and Goodies: How LaPierre Spent the NRA’s Money

USA

The case brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James against the National Rifle Association sought to expose how it used donations from gun owners across the country to pay for luxury and exotic trips for its executives.

Its leader, Wayne LaPierre, was the face of persistent opposition to firearms regulations. He advocated unfettered Second Amendment rights and the self-reliance provided by firepower. Behind the scenes, however, Mr. LaPierre had a taste for the good life and spent the group’s money on luxuries such as vacations in the Bahamas.

But such trips were far from the most lavish or outlandish expenditures. Here are some of the most high-profile cases of misspending for which he was found liable on Friday, according to evidence and testimony.

CLOTHES: Between 2004 and 2017, Mr. LaPierre spent nearly $275,000 on suits from a luxury Beverly Hills boutique, Zegna. Mr. LaPierre said he bought them on the recommendation of an NRA contractor who “hated my clothes.” Mr. LaPierre had argued that the suits were merely “costumes I wore on TV,” albeit extremely expensive ones.

ITALIAN FOOD: Mr. LaPierre testified that he did not drink or smoke, but that he certainly knew how to pay a bill: Over 15 days in June 2016, the NRA spent $5,398.18 at the Landini Brothers Restaurant, through the defendants, a Italian restaurant in Alexandria, Virginia. Despite this, Mr. LaPierre apparently wasn’t having a good time. “I hated that cigar bar,” he said.

TRIP: Mr. LaPierre spent nearly $250,000 on flights around the world, including Italy, Budapest, the Bahamas and the biggest small city in the world: Reno, Nev. His NRA-paid vacations also sounded lavish. He spent $107,620 on a vacation to the Bahamas in 2016, where he stayed on a superyacht with a personal chef and a personal watercraft.

GIFTS: Mr. LaPierre was generous and billed the organization for a number of expensive gifts, including a $1,260 handbag and $860 worth of Bergdorf Goodman candlesticks. There was also fitness equipment, including about $400 worth of Fitbits for friends and family.

INSECT CONTROL: After noticing his security staff being eaten alive, Mr. LaPierre spent $810 on a mosquito control kit for his home in 2017. “Security people would be out there all night,” he said.