The case of a campaign worker accused of stealing tens of thousands of dollars he had promised to invest on behalf of a former Maine candidate for the U.S. Senate is scheduled to go to trial Wednesday.

Matthew McDonald, who worked on independent Max Linn’s 2020 bid to challenge U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, was charged in 2023 with theft by deception after being accused of taking $225,000 from Linn, who died in December 2021 at 62.

The case is scheduled to go to trial Wednesday in Hancock County Superior Court, according to a notice from the Office of the Maine Attorney General, which is prosecuting the case.

McDonald is accused of stealing from Linn during the period of April through July 2021.

“The defendant did intentionally create or reinforce the impression that he would invest money in certain digital assets on Linn’s behalf, which impression was false and which defendant did not believe to be true, all in violation of (state law),” reads a copy of the April 2023 indictment against McDonald.

Neither McDonald nor his attorney, Robert Van Horn, responded to requests for comment Tuesday afternoon.

A U.S. District Court judge ruled in a separate civil case in November to award Linn’s estate $225,000 in relief, though court records indicate McDonald may have trouble paying the money.

“The record establishes that (defendant) has no earnings or income,” reads a recent filing by U.S. Magistrate Judge John Nivison, who recommended against a payment installment order.

In Oct. 2021, a judge granted McDonald a temporary protection order after he accused Linn of pointing a gun at him in a dispute over the cryptocurrency investment, an accusation that Linn denied.

Linn was a longshot in the 2020 U.S. Senate race in Maine that featured Republican incumbent Collins and Democratic challenger and former Maine House Speaker Sara Gideon.

A retired financial planner from Bar Harbor, he self-funded his campaign and drew attention for his debate antics, including cutting up a mask in protest of COVID-19 restrictions and replying “request denied” when moderators asked him to stay on topic.