Four-time Republican congressional candidate Omar Navarro has pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud in a plea deal.

Navarro ran four times, all unsuccessfully, to represent California’s 43rd Congressional District and unseat Democrat Maxine Waters, who has represented the area since 1991.

Throughout his failed campaigns, he fundraised over $1 million dollars and conspired with his mother, Dora Asghari, and a friend, Zacharias Diamantides-Abel, to steal and convert funds for personal use, according to the plea agreement.

Navarro was charged with 43 counts of wire fraud in 2023.

Prosecutors have agreed to seek a prison term of no more than three years, five months. Navarro, who pleaded guilty on June 25, is scheduled for sentencing on Oct. 20.

As a part of the terms of the guilty plea, Navarro, 36, may have to forfeit the right to hold office.

One example of how the trio converted money for personal use was with Navarro writing checks to Abel or Asghari for what the plea agreement calls “little or no work performed,” and one of them cashing the check and then funneling money back to Navarro for personal use, authorities said.

The plea agreement also alleges that at Navarro’s direction, Asghari formed a consulting business to embezzle funds through. A charity, United Latino Foundation, was also created by Navarro to further embezzle campaign funds for other uses, authorities said.

Navarro’s campaign reimbursed him for numerous personal expenses, such as for shopping, entertainment and dining – including thousands of dollars spent at the Bellagio in Las Vegas, authorities said. He also bought gift cards on the basis that they would be used to pay for campaign expenses but instead purchased items for himself, including Nintendo Switch games, they said.

Another expenditure outside of the scope of allowed uses of campaign funds by Navarro was the funding of his own legal fees in his criminal stalking case, authorities said, to the tune of over $12,000 dollars.

According to the plea agreement, the campaign and its donors were defrauded of $250,000 to $550,000 dollars.

The one-time candidate had a restraining order issued against him in 2016, declaring he had to stay away from his then-wife after he pleaded guilty to placing an illegal tracking device on her car, an offense he received one day in jail and a year and six months of probation.

Three years later, a Navarro ex-girlfriend was granted a restraining order against him. She testified she had received threats from Navarro after she tried to end their romantic relationship.

In 2018, questions about Navarro’s fundraising were raised when federal election data showed that Navarro was taking a salary from his campaign contributions. At the time, Navarro said that he could not work full-time as his 2018 campaign was underway, so he paid himself “just enough” so that he could continue campaigning without going broke. He had previously worked as an online marketer and electronic salesman.

A request for comment placed with Navarro’s attorney, David Evans, was not returned.