BENSON, Ariz. — An Arizona developer is at the center of a historic criminal referral involving former Trump administration officials and a Committee on Natural Resources investigation.
The investigation reportedly found the developer, identified as El Dorado Holdings owner Mike Ingram, bribed the Trump administration to secure a permit for a new housing community near the town of Benson.
Ingram and other Arizona donors allegedly gave nearly $250,000 to the Trump Victory Fund and the Republican National Committee in 2017 in exchange for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to change its position about a Clean Water Act permit for the developer's proposed 28,000 unit "Villages at Vigneto" development near the endangered San Pedro River.
The committee's chair, Arizona congressman Raúl M. Grijalva, released a statement Wednesday morning saying the committee has filed a criminal referral to the Department of Justice due to the investigation's findings. The announcement marks the first time the Committee on Natural Resources has filed a criminal referral to the DOJ.
“The findings of this investigation show us yet again that the previous administration cast career staff expertise aside while they handed out federal agency decisions to Trump’s buddies and big donors on a pay-to-play basis,” Grijalva said.
“The Villages at Vigneto may not be a household name for many Americans, but to Arizonans, it’s been a looming threat to our fragile desert ecosystem for years."
The investigation allegedly uncovered other pieces of corruption evidence, including:
- Officials at FWS all maintained consensus about its legal position on the new community for more than a decade before it reversed that position.
- Ingram and 12 other Arizonans donated money to the Trump Victory Fund or the Republican National Committee on or near the same day. There were no other days in which more than three Arizonans donated $2,700 or more to the fund.
- On the same day as Ingram’s donation, the Trump administration announced it would re-evaluate Vigneto’s Clean Water Act permit.
According to the El Dorado Holdings website, Ingram's firm has developed residential properties in Maricopa, Gilbert, Chandler, and Phoenix.
This is a developing story. Tune in to 12 News for the latest information.
