Virginia state Sen. Louise Lucas arrested, indicted on federal charges
Federal prosecutors on Oct. 22 announced the arrest of a Virginia politician and a half dozen others in connection with an alleged bribery and racketeering scheme.
According to an indictment filed Oct. 14 in the Eastern District of Virginia, state Sen. Lille Louise Lucas and six other co-defendants are charged with conspiring to distribute and possess marijuana, conspiring to launder money, laundering money and committing bribery by distributing large quantities of illegal marijuana under the auspices of her legal medical cannabis business.
All seven defendants, who also include two daughters and one grandson of Lucas, are currently in federal custody, U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche announced at a news conference Oct. 22. He said he believes they will make an initial appearance in court on Thursday afternoon. It was not immediately known if she had obtained an attorney who could comment on Lucas' behalf.
But in a statement posted on X, Lucas wrote she would "fight back" following the Department of Justice and FBI announcing the indictment.
"I grew up under Jim Crow. I've seen what happens when people in power try to silence those who stand up against them. I've spent my life fighting back, and I'm not stopping now," the statement reads. "I will not be intimidated. I will not be bullied, and I will not back down."
The 82-year-old senator's arrest comes after the FBI searched Lucas' office and a cannabis retail business she co-owns in Portsmouth, Virginia, on May 6 as part of a corruption investigation, USA TODAY previously reported.
The senator's co-defendants named in the 45-page indictment are Lisa Lucas Burke, Prince Albert Williamson Hudson, Ryan Eichelberger, Theresa Lucas-Lamb, Carlton Upton, Jr. and Tameka Johnson. It was not immediately clear whether they had obtained legal representation.
Blanche alleged at the press conference that Lucas arranged for getting and distributing marijuana, supervised laundering marijuana proceeds, used her political influence to demand and accept a bribe, and tried to influence Virginia legislation to benefit herself and her family.
The charges "reflect the alleged behavior of a public servant who put her own financial interests before the people she was elected to serve," Blanche said.
Lucas, a critic of President Donald Trump, has been a state senator since 1992. She is the state senate’s president pro tempore and among the state’s most prominent and outspoken Democrats.
Lucas helped lead Virginia's recent redistricting effort, which was expected to enable more Democrats to win congressional seats in the upcoming November midterms.
Early in the news conference, Blanche said facts and evidence led the investigation "to begin many years ago."
Responding later to a reporter's question on which exact year the investigation started in and what prompted it, Blanche said he didn't know exactly, "but suffice to say, it wasn't started... by the Trump administration."
FBI Director Kash Patel, who also spoke at the news conference, accused Sen. Lucas of using her position of power and public trust in the Virginia state senate "to deflect and defend against her own criminal enterprise."
"Truly, the epitome of hypocrisy for a public official," Patel said.
This is a developing story.
Contributing: Phillip Bailey and Marc Ramirez with USA TODAY
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] and follow her on X @nataliealund.