Wayne LaPierre, the longtime head of the National Rifle Association (NRA), announced on Friday that he is resigning as leader of the US gun lobby, just days before the start of his corruption trial.
The 74-year-old LaPierre cited unspecified health reasons for his decision to step down from January 31 as chief executive of the NRA.
“I’ve been a card-carrying member of this organization for most of my adult life, and I will never stop supporting the NRA and its fight to defend Second Amendment freedom,” he said in a statement, referring to the right to “keep and bear arms.”
“My passion for our cause burns as deeply as ever.”
LaPierre, who has led the NRA for more than 30 years, and three other current and former NRA executives have been sued by New York Attorney General Letitia James, who has accused them of using the non-profit organization as a “personal piggy bank.”
Their civil trial is scheduled to begin in New York on Monday.
James has accused LaPierre of using NRA funds to fuel a lavish lifestyle that included spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on private jets and luxury vacations.
The 150-year-old NRA is the leading promoter of gun rights in the United States and has focused its efforts since the 1970s on battling gun restrictions.
From 2000 to 2012, the NRA and its allies in the firearms industry combined to pour $80 million into US House of Representatives, Senate and presidential races, according to an analysis by the Center for Responsive Politics.
In the 2016 presidential election, the NRA spent about $20 million for ads attacking Democrat Hillary Clinton and another $10 million for ads supporting Republican Donald Trump.
The NRA said the current head of general operations, Andrew Arulanandam, will serve as interim chief executive after LaPierre steps down.
