Black Lives Matter (BLM) activist and New York Times best-selling author Shaun King purchased a $40,000 dog from a California breeder using donor money from his political action committee, according to a report.
Grassroots Law, a non-profit political action committee that King co-founded, paid $40,650 to Potrero Performance Dogs earlier this year, Federal Election Records reveal. The committee elects progressive candidates that would invoke “systemic change to end oppressive policing, incarceration, and injustice in this country.”
Payments made to the breeder were labeled as “contractor services.” However, The Washington Free Beacon reports King welcomed Marz, a brown and black-spotted mastiff, as “a new member of the King family” on his social media days after he finalized the purchase in February.
The announcement said Marz would provide “alertness and protection” for his family.
But according to the New York Post, King returned the dog to the breeder and has since deleted the post or made it private.
Potrero’s Instagram page showed a picture of Marz at an American Kennel Club winning “Best in Show,” adding, “he’s got a little too much energy to be a family dog, so he came back.”
However, Potrero’s page has since deleted the post or made it private.
Per the Free Beacon, the Kings’ $40,000 dog cost nearly as much as the contributions made by the committee to political candidates since 2021, which totaled around $56,000.
Scott Walter, the president of Capital Research Center, a think tank investigating left-wing groups, told the Free Beacon that King’s dog expense might not be considered illegal for the PAC.
“But it shows little respect for King’s donors,” Walter said.
Potrero and Grassroots Law did not respond to the Free Beacon’s requests for comment.
However, King posted a photo on Instagram of himself with his family on Tuesday responding to the allegations, saying he worked hard for their privacy, safety, and security.
“But I need you to know this so that you understand why our family not only needs a guard dog at home, but 24/7 security wherever we go,” King said. “White supremacists and people who’ve meant my family harm have now shown up to our last three homes.”
“Multiple times,” he added.
King said that before he defends his reasoning for the way in which he protects his family, he blames the lack of security on the Tri-state area’s restrictive gun laws, news outlets that have allegedly doxxed his home address, and fake police reports from strangers that allege King abused his children.
He also claimed he’s received hundreds of death threats from civilians, police, military snipers, and white supremacist groups.
“This is what my life has become,” he said. “I spend more time each day now thinking about how to keep my family safe than I do doing the actually work I’m called to do.”
“So know this, when you see reports about the money it costs to keep me and my family safe, it’s nowhere near enough,” King added. “Not at all. Not even close.”
In a separate Instagram post, King explained why his organization paid for Marz and then later decided to return the dog back to the breeder.
“Marz was purchased to roam our property and roam our home and even protect us on the road,” King wrote.
He said Grassroots Law helped purchase Marz because the organization covers all of his security costs.
“Compared to what 24/7 human security costs, Marz was affordable,” he added. “We made sure that the purchase was legal and compliant before making it.”
However, soon after Marz began marking his territory at King’s residence, the family found he was not a perfect fit for them.
King said Marz was brought back to his previous owners months ago.
The latest headline surrounding King’s finances comes after several other fraudulent activities the BLM activist has been accused of in recent years.
Samira Rice, who lost her 12-year-old son Tamir Rice to a police shooting in 2014, accused King of profiting thousands of dollars by exploiting her son’s name.
“Personally I don’t understand how you sleep at night,” Rice said on her Instagram, according to The U.S. Sun.
“As a white man acting Black you are a imposter that can not be trusted,” she added. “You are a selfish self centered person and God will deal with you White man.”
The Philadelphia Inquirer reported last December that King’s other political action committee, Real Justice, was ordered to pay $30,000 to the City of Brotherly Love for campaign finance violations during Democrat District Attorney Larry Krasner’s race.
DeRay Mckesson, a civil rights activist and a former ally of King, has accused the BLM activist of fraud dating back to 2014.
King denied the allegations and underwent a 2019 financial review by a “team of experts,” who investigated the $34.5 million he has raised since Black Lives Matter took the stage nearly ten years ago.
“In short, we find absolutely no evidence that Shaun has ever inappropriately accessed any funds that he has raised,” the Financial Review Board wrote.
“We searched, and we asked,” the board added. “Not one single family, charity, cause or campaign said Shaun was ever compensated, directly, or indirectly, for his online fundraising.”