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12h ago

FBI Raids Virginia Senate Leader Louise Lucas’s Office and Co-Owned Dispensary in Federal Corruption Probe

The sealed warrants are part of a long-running public-corruption inquiry tied to marijuana businesses with no charges announced.

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Senator L. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, waits to vote as the Senate Courts of Justice met in the Old Senate Chamber inside the State Capitol in Richmond, Va., Friday, March 4, 2016, to vote for Judge Rossie D. Alston to be named to the Supreme Court of Virginia and Judge Kenneth Melvin to replace Alston on the Court of Appeals. (Bob Brown/Richmond Times-Dispatch via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT
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Overview

  • The FBI, which executed court-authorized warrants Wednesday, searched Lucas’s Portsmouth district office and The Cannabis Outlet she co-owns and removed boxes and electronics.
  • Sources familiar with the case say the probe focuses on possible bribery linked to marijuana dispensaries, and agents served warrants at more than 10 locations across the region.
  • At least three people at the dispensary were detained during the searches, while Lucas appeared on site and told reporters she did not know why agents were there.
  • Lucas has not been arrested, no public charges have been filed, and search-warrant filings remain sealed in the Eastern District of Virginia.
  • Democratic leaders questioned the timing after her April redistricting referendum win, while multiple outlets report the investigation began during the Biden administration and note her shop drew 2022 scrutiny for mislabeled products with illegal delta-9 THC.