eBay Founder Pierre Omidyar Donates Nearly $2M to Police Funding
The billionaire founder of e-commerce site eBay has invested money in a private security startup dubbed “Uber for bodyguards” — while also donating nearly $2 million to groups campaigning for defunding or, according to one report abolish the police.
Pierre Omidyar, whose wealth is rated by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index As of Friday, the amount totaled $8.91 billion and has reportedly donated over $500,000 to organizations working against the police killing of George Floyd in 2020 through his charity group, the Omidyar Network protested.
Two other organizations associated with the Omidyar network — PolicyLink and Democracy Fund — received $1.3 million to sponsor a website called DefundPolice.org, a tool advocates use to call for cuts in police budgets. according to independent journalist Lee Fang.
The Omidyar Network donated $300,000 to The Movement for Black Lives, an organization that bills itself as an “abolitionist” coalition, said Fang, who before becoming an independent journalist spent years as a reporter for The Intercept, one of Omidyar’s founders news page .
“When we say ‘defund funds and abolish the police,’ we mean exactly that,” the black lives movement said wrote in a recent statement.
Fang cited tax filings showing that Omidyar Network donated an additional $100,000 to a Chicago-based group called Equity and Transformation, which goes by the “Defund” banner[ing] Police.”
But as a private investor, Omidyar has poured his sizable fortune into startups like Bond, a New York-based company that allows people to hire a bodyguard if they wish, Fang wrote.
The Post has reached out to the Omidyar network for comment.
Established in 2017, The company raised $72 million in funding including investments from Omidyar. Former NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly is an advisor to the Bond board.
“With the Bond platform, bodyguards are no longer reserved for celebrities and executives,” the company’s website says.
“Now you can reserve affordable, well-trained and professional bodyguards anytime, when you need them, through the Bond platform and app.”
According to Fang, Omidyar’s investment portfolio also includes a stake in Deep Sentinel, an AI-powered security camera system used to identify intruders.
Both the Bond app and Deep Sentinel have taken advantage of the nationwide rise in crime – largely due to the Defund the Police movement – to offer their products as alternatives.
Kelly told Fox News that “sadly the police have taken a step back in recent years” and that Bond “fills the void when you’re feeling a little uncomfortable”.
Deep Sentinel recently told Fox News that its business has “tripled” in the last year amid concerns about rising crime.
