A businessman from Upstate New York has received a full presidential pardon from President Donald Trump, a decision that came shortly after his mother donated $1 million to a pro-Trump political action committee — a sequence of events that is drawing scrutiny and criticism.
According to reports from the Buffalo News and other outlets, Elizabeth Fago, a longtime Republican donor, contributed $1 million to Make America Great Again Inc., a super PAC supporting Trump, on April 3, 2025.
Less than three weeks later, on April 23, Trump granted a full pardon to her son, Paul Walczak II, 55, who had recently been sentenced in a federal tax case.
Walczak, originally from Amherst, New York, pleaded guilty in November to one felony and one misdemeanor related to tax offenses. Federal prosecutors said he failed to pay more than $10 million in income and employment taxes tied to his healthcare businesses.
Court records indicate he withheld nearly $7.5 million in payroll taxes from employees but did not remit those funds to the Internal Revenue Service. Last year, he was sentenced to 18 months in prison and ordered to pay $4.4 million in restitution.
However, Walczak never began serving his prison sentence. Trump’s pardon was issued less than two weeks after the Department of Justice publicly announced his sentencing, effectively eliminating both the incarceration and the restitution requirement.
The New York Times reported that Fago’s $1 million contribution coincided with her attendance at a fundraiser at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in early April.
Federal campaign finance records show that while Fago has a history of supporting Republican candidates and committees — particularly in Florida — her donation to MAGA Inc. was far larger than any previous political contribution she had made.
Fago, 75, has described herself as a longtime GOP activist dating back to her years in Buffalo nearly five decades ago. She has also been an outspoken supporter of Trump.
In an interview with the Buffalo News, she suggested that her son’s prosecution was politically motivated, saying she believes he would not have been charged if he were not her son. She characterized the pardon as a just and compassionate use of presidential authority.
Fago, her son and their attorney declined to comment on whether the $1 million donation played any role in the decision to grant clemency.
The timing of the pardon has sparked criticism from Democrats and some legal observers. Former U.S. Attorney Denise E. O’Donnell called the move a misuse of executive power, arguing that the pardon system is intended to address wrongful convictions or reward rehabilitation — not to benefit wealthy donors.
Walczak’s case appears to be part of a broader trend. NBC News previously reported that Trump has granted clemency to a significant number of individuals convicted of white-collar crimes during his second term. In addition to those pardoned for their roles in the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot, dozens of others — including individuals and at least one corporation — have received clemency.
Collectively, recipients during the first year of Trump’s second term had been ordered to pay nearly $300 million in fines and restitution, exceeding totals from his first term.
While presidential pardons are constitutionally authorized and historically controversial at times, this latest case has intensified debate over whether political donations and access to power are influencing clemency decisions.
As scrutiny grows, the administration has not publicly addressed the connection between Fago’s contribution and her son’s pardon.
