Patriot Prayer leader Joey Gibson is using an untraceable church to raise money for his legal bills and political activity after multiple crowdfunding sites and payment processors severed ties with accounts linked directly to him and his right-wing group.

Gibson began promoting the “Church of Faith and Freedom” across his social media platforms last month, telling supporters that he now prefers that they send him donations through the organization’s website.

In recent solicitations, the conservative activist claims his political opponents have “done everything they can to shut down ways for Christians to fund raise, accept donations, or make any money at all.”

“Thankfully,” Gibson’s pitch continues, “’The Church of Faith and Freedom’ is helping us Christians by accepting donations on our behalf in order to legally fight back against this discrimination.”

The church, according to its website, seeks to help “Preachers hit the streets by helping to protect them legally and financially” and allows people to give money to evangelists who are working in Los Angeles, Portland, Seattle and Tacoma.

There is no record of such a church in California, Oregon or Washington, according to officials who oversee charities and non-profits in each state.

Its website, registered in May, provides no address, contact information or list of staff. Online searches show the only reference to the Church of Faith and Freedom comes from social media accounts connected to Gibson or Patriot Prayer.

Reached by phone Wednesday, Gibson declined to answer multiple questions about the Church of Faith and Freedom and his connection to it.

“No comment,” he said. “What else do you want to ask?”

Gibson, a Vancouver-area resident, has led marches and rallies in Portland and other liberal bastions on the West Coast, including Seattle, Olympia and the Bay Area, often drawing strong — and sometimes violent — opposition.

He faces felony riot charges and a $1 million lawsuit in connection with a bloody brawl May 1 outside a Northeast Portland pub and cidery. Police and prosecutors allege Gibson and several Patriot Prayer associates provoked the confrontation against left-wing activists, including masked antifa members, who were celebrating May Day at Cider Riot.

With the criminal and civil cases pending, Patriot Prayer began soliciting donations this summer for Gibson’s legal defense through the crowdfunding website Go Get Funding. The campaign had raised more than $5,000 before the company abruptly shut it down in September.

“The group's actions were not only violating our terms and conditions but were also violating the terms of conditions of the payment provider which was handling their donations,” said Victoria Thomas, a Go Get Funding spokeswoman, told The Oregonian/OregonLive. Thomas would not specify the violations.

In addition to Go Get Funding, Gibson had also been asking his supporters to send him money through a Patriot Prayer account set up on PayPal. That account is no longer active, said PayPal spokeswoman Kim Eichorn, who declined to provide additional information.

The recent loss of crowdfunding sites and payment processors is not a first for Gibson and Patriot Prayer. According to Willamette Week, the platform GivingFuel permanently banned the group from raising money on its site last November for “advocating and celebrating violence.”

Gibson said he and Patriot Prayer have also been booted off GoFundMe.

-- Shane Dixon Kavanaugh; 503-294-7632

Email at skavanaugh@oregonian.com

Follow on Twitter @shanedkavanaugh

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