Embattled Fulton County District Attorney Fani Wills paid his prosecutor friend Nathan Wade nearly double the salary of his colleagues and met Kamala Harris before she indicted Donald Trump, a defense attorney claimed in explosive testimony Wednesday.
Ashley Merchant, who first made startling allegations about the affair between Willis and Special Prosecutor Wade, testified at a hearing in the Georgia State Senate as a judge considered whether Willis should be removed from the Trump case.
Trump co-defendant Michael Roman's attorney said Wade received more than $650,000 in invoices from Willis and left little information in his invoices.
She also testified about the 12,000 text messages Wade and Willis exchanged before claiming they began their relationship.
Willis faces expulsion from the Trump trial because she is accused of dating Wade before hiring him to investigate the former president.
The prosecutor has denied the relationship was inappropriate and is now awaiting Judge Scott McAfee's decision on whether to disqualify her.
Attorney John Merchant speaks with his wife and co-counsel Ashleigh Merchant during the hearing in the Georgia election interference case
In her testimony Wednesday, Merchant said Wade's billing, in which he was paid $250 an hour, contained “virtually no responsibility.”
Willis said in her own stunning testimony last month that Wade took a pay cut from what he charged as a private attorney before bringing him onto her team – a move she testified to before they began their romantic relationship.
The Republican Party-led panel is reviewing Willis' office as a judge decides whether to disqualify and exempt her from racketeering conspiracy charges leveled against Donald Trump and 18 of his alleged co-conspirators in connection with his attempt to overturn the state's election .
Merchant filed a lawsuit on behalf of Trump co-defendant Michael Roman, asking that Willis be removed from the case because of her “inappropriate” relationship with prosecutor Wade
She testified before a Senate special committee after receiving a subpoena.
The dealer said its invoices included “virtually no” accountability. Records Merchant previously revealed that Wade received more than $650,000 in billings for Willis' office.
Wade testified that he sometimes did more work than he could bill for, and Willis testified that she hired him as lead prosecutor after another preferred candidate didn't take the job.
In an even more explosive statement, Merchant said Willis met with Vice President Kamala Harris on February 28, 2023, during a trip to Washington, DC. Citing White House records, she said Atlanta's Democratic mayor, Andre Dickens, was also present.
The meeting raises questions about whether an indictment against Trump occurred, although Merchant has provided no evidence of that.
Trump and 18 co-defendants were indicted on August 15 for allegedly extorting a “criminal enterprise” to overturn the election.
Lawyers for Trump's co-defendants said the text messages proved she lied about when she started dating Wade and accused her of playing the “race card” when she made the allegations against her politically motivated
Willis (left) and her former boyfriend Wade (right) sit at the prosecutor's table during closing arguments for her disqualification hearing March 1
Ashleigh Merchant and her husband John represented the Trump co-defendants in the disqualification hearing and advocated for Willis to be removed from the case
On Wednesday, Merchant outlined her theory that Willis and Wade intentionally presented a complex case that allowed Wade to bill for more hours, potentially benefiting him and Wade.
She was then confronted with questions about why Willis, who earns a salary of more than $200,000 a year, would engage in the elaborate scheme in exchange for thousands of dollars worth of vacations and travel.
Merchant represents Michael Roman, who was indicted as part of an effort to replace “fake voters” in a state carried by Joe Biden in 2020.
At an evidentiary hearing, testimony was given as to how Willis would reimburse Wade in cash for travel expenses to Napa Valley and other locations.
Fani Willis paid 'lover' Nathan Wade almost DOUBLE the salary of his colleagues and met Kamala Harris before accusing Trump, defense attorney says in bombshell statement about the 'affair' and her 12,000 text messages