An insurance brokerage executive in California will plead guilty to breaking federal campaign laws by making contributions illegally to a joint fundraising committee, according to the U.S. Department of Justice’s Central District of California office.
The DOJ charged Teena Maria Hostovich, 66, of La Cañada Flintridge, with making contributions in the name of another aggregating to more than $10,000 in a year.
Hostovich agreed to plead guilty to the federal criminal charge and agreed to pay a fine of $43,500, according to the DOJ.
Hostovich is expected to make her initial appearance in U.S. District Court in downtown Los Angeles in coming weeks.
According to a plea agreement, from May 2020 through 2023, Hostovich made a total of $75,700 in contributions to principal campaign committees and federal joint fundraising committees of federal candidates in the names of other people. For the calendar years 2021 through 2023, Hostovich’s conduit contributions aggregated to more than $10,000 during each of those years, according to the DOJ.
Hostovich allegedly used 11 different people, including employees at the insurance brokerage that employed her, family members of those employees, and individuals who performed personal services for Hostovich and her family, according to the DOJ.
The charges state that Hostovich contacted one of these individuals or their family members and asked them to contribute individually or have one of their family members contribute to a particular candidate’s campaign or fundraising committee. Then Hostovich paid the person the funds via PayPal either before the contribution was made or reimbursed them afterward.
According to the DOJ, Hostovich sometimes explicitly stated that she would advance the money for the contribution or pay the person back for that contribution.
Hostovich admitted in the plea agreement that one of the reasons she engaged in conduit contributions was to secure an appointment to the Kennedy Center Board of Trustees in Washington, D.C. She did not obtain the position.
According to the DOJ, the recipients of the contributions included a joint fundraising committee that included a U.S. senator’s principal campaign committee, a principal campaign committee for a U.S. senatorial candidate, principal campaign committees for two members of the U.S. House of Representatives, and a joint fundraising committee that included the principal campaign for a presidential candidate.
Hostovich did not reveal to any of these candidate committees or joint fundraising committees she was the source of the funds donated by the 11 individuals, according to the DOJ.
The FBI investigated the matter. Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas F. Rybarczyk of the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section is prosecuting this case.
Topics California Agencies