Federal investigation into La Mota closes in on Val Hoyle
The federal criminal investigation into La Mota corruption is closing in on embattled freshman Val Hoyle, according to a new report.
“Though she has stonewalled every attempt to get the truth, corrupt Val Hoyle is not above the law. The consequences of Hoyle’s betrayal of Oregonians’ trust to her La Mota donors are just beginning.” – NRCC Spokesperson Ben Petersen
In case you missed it…
Feds Issue Subpoena to State Agency That Gave La Mota-Affiliated Nonprofit a $500,000 Grant
Willamette Week
Sophie Peel
The subpoena suggests the feds are interested in the relationship between La Mota and U.S. Rep. Val Hoyle, who led the state agency until 2023.
The United States Attorney’s Office on Jan. 29 issued a subpoena to the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries, asking for records related to the agency’s $500,000 grant to a cannabis nonprofit in the fall of 2022, while BOLI was under the leadership of Val Hoyle, now a member of Congress.
The subpoena appears to be connected to the federal criminal inquiry into the relationship between former Secretary of State Shemia Fagan and the co-founders of the embattled La Mota cannabis chain, Aaron Mitchell and Roos Cazares. The fed launched the investigation last summer after Fagan resigned from office in May following WW’s reporting that she had signed a $10,000-per-month contract with the cannabis duo, who had become influential donors to Oregon’s top Democrats.
BOLI was not one of the five agencies initially subpoenaed by the feds at the onset of the criminal investigation last summer.
But the Jan. 29 subpoena shows that the feds have broadened their inquiry, and now may be looking at the relationship between the troubled cannabis moguls and another politician: U.S. Rep. Val Hoyle.
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The Jan. 29 subpoena asks that BOLI provide all records—including meeting notes, audio recordings, documents and other communications—related to Endeavor receiving the half-million dollar grant. The subpoena asks for records related to five people integral to the nonprofit: Rosa Cazares and Aaron Mitchell, the co-founders of La Mota; Laura Vega, the co-founder of Endeavor alongside Cazares and a former employee of La Mota; Mary Allen, La Mota’s bookkeeper for years now; and Fred Voelkel, the former chief operating officer for La Mota.