Alina Habba Mildon signed the lucrative contract while working at the Justice Department, before Trump pardoned the bank.
Published on November 1, 2026
US President Donald Trump has criticized one of his former lawyers for signing a contract worth more than $50 million with the family of a Venezuelan banker who Trump later pardoned.
Alina Habba Mildon allegedly signed the lucrative deal while working as a federal prosecutor, then began working for the banker’s family while still serving as an advisor to the U.S. Department of Justice.
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“I thought it was totally abhorrent and outrageous, and it’s not acceptable,” Trump told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida on Saturday.
“Not acceptable at all,” he added.
According to the New York Times, Habba Mildon signed a four-year contract in October 2025 with a company owned by the family of Julio Herrera Velutini, a Venezuelan banker who was seeking a presidential pardon.
Herrera was accused of bribing former Puerto Rico Governor Wanda Vazquez Garced in exchange for the removal of a financial regulator who was investigating his bank. He was facing federal corruption charges in the United States before reaching a plea deal with prosecutors in August 2025.
Habba Mildon’s contract with the family company guaranteed him more than $50 million over four years, including an annual salary of $10 million and bonuses.
When she signed the deal, Habba Mildon was the acting U.S. attorney for New Jersey, a position Trump had appointed her to after working as his personal attorney.
She left that position in December after a court ruled she could not legally hold the position. She then immediately accepted another job at the Department of Justice as a senior advisor to the Attorney General.
On January 1, Habba Mildon officially began working for the banker’s family while still employed by the Department of Justice.
Two weeks later, on January 15, Trump granted Herrera a full presidential pardon.
This arrangement has raised questions about possible conflicts of interest, given Habba Mildon’s government position and his ties to Trump.
The company that hired her, Concord Partners, has no public profile and its business activities remain unclear, according to the New York Times.
Habba Mildon has denied playing any role in obtaining Herrera’s pardon.
Last week, she said she was never paid to secure a pardon, never discussed it with anyone at the White House or Justice Department and never worked to secure a pardon for anyone.
Trump was reportedly furious when he learned the amount of his contract.
The New York Times reported that he told aides and allies that Habba Mildon should donate some of the money to his future presidential library or another Trump-linked organization.
He also reportedly told at least one ally that Herrera’s family should stop paying him the remainder of the contract.
Speaking on Saturday, Trump said he told Habba Mildon he didn’t want her to be paid, calling the situation “terrible.”
The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
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