Corruption Case rocks the Californian Cannabis industry

Charges were brought against Councilor and Mayor of Calexico, California, David Romero and Commissioner Bruno Suarez-Soto for allegedly involved in a cannabis bribery scheme in which they accepted cash in exchange for perks from the city to cannabis companies . It was done via video teleconference, and although the two were charged, they were released on $ 10,000 bail. However, you will have to appear in court again on July 2 to receive a conviction. According to the official indictment, the FBI alleges that Romero and Suarez-Soto took $ 35,000 in bribes from undercover FBI agents who tried to fight corruption in the city. In exchange for that money, Romero and Suarez-Soto apparently guaranteed that the city would quickly and definitely issue a pharmacy permit, even if that meant revoking other permits or getting in the way of other applicants. Both also admitted taking other bribes in the past, claiming, "This is not our first rodeo." This is no small scandal considering that Councilor Romero was about to become the next mayor of Calexico. Had he not been charged with being part of a cannabis bribery scheme, he would have become mayor last July. Suarez-Soto was on the city commission dealing with the growth of the economy and the community, including working with future developers to promote the city's economy and infrastructure. "Public officials must act with honesty and integrity when doing public affairs," said U.S. Attorney Robert Brewer. "If civic leaders fail to meet these standards, we will. We claim these defendants traded on their positions of trust and sold the integrity of the government in exchange for thousands of dollars. We will enforce the law vigorously whenever a civil servant puts his own greed above the interests of his constituents. " "Public corruption remains the FBI's top criminal priority. As such, the FBI in San Diego and Imperial Counties has a robust public corruption program dedicated to exposing criminal conduct by public officials," said acting FBI SAC Omer Meisel. "The investigation of Mr. Romero and Mr. Suarez-Soto is another example of the FBI's commitment to the accountability of those who serve the public and hold positions of trust." Allegedly, according to the official report on the cannabis bribery scheme, they met with the undercover agents in a restaurant in Calexico in 2019. They then agreed to expedite the application for a dispensary permit and promised that in exchange for the $ 35,000 bribe they would delay permit applications for other prospective buyers if that is what it takes to open the dispensary to the undercover agents to get up and running. Then, later, when asked if they needed more than the $ 350,000 it took to make it happen, they claimed they didn't.