{"id":3724,"date":"2026-08-07T09:41:29","date_gmt":"2026-08-07T09:41:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/corporate-movers-usa.com\/?p=3724"},"modified":"2026-08-07T09:41:29","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T09:41:29","slug":"par-fundings-fraudster-founder-has-a-website-lobbying-for-a-pardon-from-president-trump","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/corporate-movers-usa.com\/?p=3724","title":{"rendered":"Par Funding\u2019s fraudster founder has a website lobbying for a pardon from President Trump"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div>\n<div><audio><\/audio><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Joseph LaForte was once the charismatic head of Par Funding, a Philadelphia-based lending firm that collapsed in spectacular fashion as prosecutors said he misled investors to the tune of $400 million and resorted to brutish loan shark tactics to collect on unpaid debts.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/corporate-movers-usa.com\/?p=3722\">Trump signs 2 immigration actions to limit birthright citizenship<\/a><\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>Now, despite the fact that LaForte pleaded guilty to racketeering and wire fraud charges, a website has been set up to lobby President Donald Trump to free him from a 15\u00bd-year prison sentence \u2014 part of a campaign that describes LaForte\u2019s prosecution as a \u201cwitch hunt.\u201d<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>\u201cStand Up for What\u2019s Right, Free Joe LaForte,\u201d says a scrolling banner on the website, FreeJoeLaForte.com. The site\u2019s homepage also prominently features several images of Trump and says the goal is to \u201cfight for [LaForte\u2019s] presidential pardon through activism and exposing the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>Websites dedicated to overturning convictions are not unusual. But the existence of the LaForte campaign comes as Trump, in his second term, has shown a willingness to grant clemency to political allies or people he believes have been unfairly prosecuted \u2014 including those convicted of fraud. And well-connected lobbyists and lawyers have reportedly started charging defendants eye-watering sums for promises of presidential relief.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>LaForte does not have an official clemency application pending with the Office of the Pardon Attorney, according to that agency\u2019s website. But the LaForte website is clear about its intent to lobby Trump for freedom. <\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>How the campaign came together \u2014 and whether LaForte has a role in it \u2014 is something of a mystery.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>LaForte\u2019s lawyer in his criminal case, Joseph Corazzo, said he didn\u2019t know of the site until he was contacted by The Inquirer and said he\u2019s had no role in any potential efforts to seek clemency from Trump for LaForte.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>LaForte, meanwhile, is incarcerated at a federal prison in Fort Dix, N.J., and is not scheduled to be released until 2035.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>\n<h3>Unidentified creators<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>The LaForte website, FreeJoeLaForte.com, does not say who owns or runs it. And phone messages and emails left through its contact pages in recent weeks went unanswered.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>One of the calls was directed to a number associated with John Sirmans, of Fanwood, N.J. And Sirmans\u2019 name is listed as an author on dozens of PDFs that were published on the LaForte site.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>It is not clear how or if Sirmans and LaForte know each other, and Sirmans did not respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>PDFs on the site list another author as \u201cLisa Mac.\u201d LaForte\u2019s wife, Lisa McElhone, was sentenced to one day in federal custody for her role in the Par Funding scandal, and the Justice Department said LaForte sometimes used the alias \u201cJoe Mack\u201d while working at Par Funding.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>Attempts to reach McElhone \u2014 including by visiting Lacquer Lounge, the nail salon she owns in Old City \u2014 were unsuccessful.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>Meanwhile, a petition on change.org \u2014 which urges people to visit FreeJoeLaForte.com \u2014 is even more forceful its views on LaForte\u2019s case, calling his imprisonment \u201cunlawful\u201d and saying he is \u201can innocent man targeted by a weaponized justice system that bends to partisan agendas.\u201d<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>But the creator of the petition, which has 40 verified signatures, is listed only as \u201cTruth Seeker,\u201d and attempts to reach that person through change.org were unsuccessful.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/corporate-movers-usa.com\/?p=3720\">Kyle Schwarber breaks his slump as Phillies collect season-high eight doubles in 7-3 win vs. Nationals<\/a><\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>\n<h3>Extensive coverage<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>One of the more prominent sections on LaForte\u2019s website, meanwhile, is a list of more than a dozen news articles written by Milton Allimadi, a New York-based journalist who runs an outlet called Black Star News. <\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>On LaForte\u2019s site, Allimadi\u2019s stories are labeled as being part of a series \u201cdedicated to exposing the truth and corruption involved in the wrongful persecution of Joseph LaForte.\u201d<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>Allimadi said via email that he did now know who started FreeJoeLaForte.com or how the Black Star News articles ended up being highlighted there.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>He said he learned of LaForte\u2019s case after speaking with the father of an inmate housed alongside LaForte. He declined to identify the person. <\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>Allimadi said he wrote about LaForte for Black Star News because the Par Funding founder\u2019s story had \u201cmany interesting angles.\u201d He said he\u2019s never spoken to anyone associated with FreeJoeLaForte.com and was not paid by anyone connected to the site for writing or publishing his articles.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>Still, he said, he didn\u2019t mind having his work promoted by LaForte\u2019s site because that had already led to what he said was a modest but noticeable uptick in traffic and donations to Black Star News.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>\u201cOur site\u2019s major support comes from readers who donate \u2026 and some of his supporters who read and like the articles also definitely contributed, because there was a little spike,\u201d Allimadi said.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>Another case that Allimadi covered extensively in recent months led to a sizable legal judgment against him.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>Last month, a jury in Michigan awarded more than $12 million to a doctor who said Allimadi and Black Star News targeted him with a \u201crelentless, vindictive, and malicious online smear campaign\u201d centering on allegations of domestic abuse and sexual assault of his ex-wife.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>Allimadi said his journalism was solid, and he is trying to get the verdict thrown out.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>As for LaForte, Allimadi said his coverage included references to LaForte\u2019s history of criminal convictions, and he said it was \u201cclear from [LaForte\u2019s] background that he\u2019s no saint.\u201d <\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>But Allimadi said he also explored angles that hadn\u2019t received much attention as Par Funding collapsed, including by raising questions about the conduct of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the court-appointed receiver in the case, which each contributed significantly to LaForte\u2019s downfall.<\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p>\u201cI can see why [LaForte\u2019s supporters] would want to post such articles on their site,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/corporate-movers-usa.com\/?p=3718\">Union drops opening match of the Leagues Cup to Cruz Azul<\/a><\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<p><i>Newsroom researcher Ryan W. Briggs contributed to this article.<\/i> <\/p>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Joseph LaForte duped investors out of more than $400 million while running Par Funding and is serving more than 15 years in prison. It&#8217;s unclear who is behind the new website.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3723,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3724","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Par Funding\u2019s fraudster founder has a website lobbying for a pardon from President Trump - Corporate Movers USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/corporate-movers-usa.com\/?p=3724\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Par Funding\u2019s fraudster founder has a website lobbying for a pardon from President Trump - Corporate Movers USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Joseph LaForte duped investors out of more than $400 million while running Par Funding and is serving more than 15 years in prison. 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