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Philanthropies Fidelity and Vanguard have reportedly suspended grants to the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) from their donor-advised funds after the group was indicted in federal lawsuits.
The Justice Department last week sued the nonprofit human rights organization for financial crimes, including fraud and money laundering.
After the lawsuits, many fans moved to donate to help defend the legal team, the New York Times reported.
However, both Fidelity Charitable and Vanguard Charitable said they are temporarily suspending the organization's grants while the case continues, according to the report.
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The headquarters of the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Ala., where Fidelity and Vanguard reportedly stopped federal grants. (Photos by Barry Lewis/Photos via Getty Images, File / Getty Images)
“Fidelity Charitable is aware of an ongoing federal investigation into the Southern Poverty Law Center,” the company, a subsidiary of Fidelity Investments, said in a message to the donor.
“According to our grantmaking standards and procedures, the organization is not an eligible recipient of the grant pending an ongoing investigation.”
Vanguard Charitable offered a similar explanation, according to the New York Times.
“The organization has had allegations and/or charges brought against it for actions that may call into question its ability to fulfill its tax-exempt charitable purpose,” the company said when it rejected the government's grant application.
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Vanguard's philanthropic arm has reportedly suspended grants from the Southern Poverty Law Center. (Gabby Jones/Bloomberg via Getty Images, File/Getty Images)
A donor-advised fund (DAF) allows people to make a tax-deductible donation and then recommend how the money is given to charities over time, according to the IRS.
“Vanguard Charitable only donates to organizations that meet IRS eligibility requirements. If we learn that an organization has been charged with a crime by state or federal authorities, we suspend donations pending the matter,” a spokesperson for the company told FOX Business.
“All grant decisions are made based on information available at the time of grant recommendations.”
On its website, Fidelity Charitable notes that a grant recommendation can be denied if an organization is investigated for “unlawful or non-charitable activities.”
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Fidelity stopped donating to the Southern Poverty Law Center from its charity fund. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images, File/Getty Images)
I Department of Justice charged the SPLC with fraud and conspiracy to conceal and money laundering, stemming from allegations that the human rights organization received $3 million in donations from individuals affiliated with various violent groups, including Unite the Right, the Ku Klux Klan and the Aryan Nations.
“The SPLC is alleged to have engaged in a massive fraud campaign to defraud its donors, enrich itself and conceal its fraudulent activities from the public,” FBI Director Kash Patel said in a statement.
“They lied to their sponsors, vowed to dismantle violent groups, and actually turned around and paid the leaders of these extremist groups – even using funds to direct these groups to the federal and state crime commission.”
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The SPLC did not immediately respond to FOX Business' request for comment.
Fox News Digital's Elaine Mallon contributed to this report.
