Tight on Time: Can Canadas Licensed Producers Hang On? The board voted unanimously to grant the abeyance to growers who had registered with the county before the ban went into effect, a decision that benefited Dayspring, his plea agreement says. (Associated Press) By Matthew Ormseth Staff Writer If you believe an Independent.com user or any material appearing on Independent.com is copyrighted material used without proper permission, please click here. Former Natural Healing Center CEO and Founder Helios Dayspring (PHOTO from The Lemoore Leader) On Wednesday, the Department of Justice revealed that San Luis Obispo resident and Natural Healing Center founder Helios Dayspring plead guilty in federal court to bribery and failing to report millions in income to the IRS. In another message, Dayspring wrote that he had invested in several properties but warned that if he was not deemed complete and didnt receive conditional-use permits, I dont get my ownership in the land., According to the plea agreement, Hill replied: Got it. It is the obligation of the operator to identify the right lawyer for the job. According to CalCoastNews, Dayspring agreed to a "confidential settlement" with William Szymczak, an 83-year-old investor who put more than $17 million into . Have a question about Government Services? Once he pleads guilty to the bribery and tax charges, Dayspring will face a statutory . I wonder what Helios real name is ?? At one point, Hill texted Dayspring that he had to keep these fs (other county supervisors) from going way beyond and it is exhausting! Dayspring has been charged with bribing late supervisor Adam Hill and faces up to 13 years in prison. Before joining The Times in 2018, he covered city news and state politics at the Hartford Courant. Copyright 2023 Santa Barbara Independent, Inc. Reproduction of material from any Independent.com pages without written permission is strictly prohibited. A week later, Hill wrote in a message to Dayspring and his employee that your industry should give me one giant French kiss wrapped in money after my work today. At Hills request, Dayspring hosted at his home a political fundraiser that raised more than $13,000, according to the plea agreement. While all the offenses for which he was sentenced occurred in S.L.O. In addition, Hill who once worked for former New Jersey Senator Bill Bradley voted to keep new operations that might compete with Daysprings from gaining a toehold in San Luis Obispo. Dayspring, over a three-year period starting in 2016, bribed a San Luis Obispo county supervisor with money, free cannabis, and fancy meals, so that the local government official would vote in favor of policies which favored Daysprings San Luis Obispo cannabis farm and his Grover Beach, California retail outlet. Success! He also had ownership interests in businesses that sold marijuana to the public, including in Grover Beach. (David Middlecamp / San Luis Obispo Tribune photo), Lindsey Holden, Matt Fountain and Kaytlyn Leslie for The San Luis Obispo Tribune, Click here to read more stories from The San Luis Obispo Tribune, Local Independent Online News (LION) Publishers, Proudly powered by Newspack by Automattic. The court filing says that beginning in fall of 2016 and continuing until about November 2019, Dayspring paid a sitting county supervisor it does not mention Hill by name approximately $29,000 in unreported cash payments. Helios Raphael "Bobby" Dayspring was charged in federal court with one count of bribery and one count of underreporting millions in federal tax income to the IRS, according to the US Department of . Adam was a friend of mine, and Im deeply disappointed and saddened to hear this news, Gibson said. I love smoking it, Dayspring said in the interview, which focused on the legalization of recreational cannabis. The U.S. DOJ says that Dayspring began paying Hill cash, first starting at $1,000, and gave Hill three $1,000 money orders. Dayspring argued he should be sentenced to three years of house arrest and probation, citing his weight gain more than 300 pounds and health concernsCrohns disease that had overtaken him in the past two years. Helios Raphael "Bobby" Dayspring, founder and former majority owner of Natural Healing Center, pleaded guilty to bribery and filing a false income tax return in October 2021. The next week, Dayspring and his associates again spoke in favor of extending the abeyance; Hill again moved to place the item on the next meetings agenda, and this time, the board took it up for a vote. The federal prosecutor, Thomas Rybarczyk, is assigned to the Public Corruption Unit. Hill responded: Got it. From my view, as a former federal prosecutor, and someone who teaches cannabis law in both business and law schools, Daysprings biggest mistake (besides the criminality) was not doing enough investigation to find the right lawyers initially (at the start of his business) to guide him. Dayspring also admitted to underreporting his taxable income by around $9 million between 2014 and 2018, resulting in an underpayment to the IRS of $3.4 million. The nature of the warrants was unknown at the time, as they were under seal. The Board of Supervisors approved that abeyance for existing growers with the initial moratorium vote in September 2016. One of Daysprings current lawyers, Sandra Brown, herself a former Central District federal prosecutor, spoke on Daysprings behalf at the sentencing hearing. Helios Raphael Dayspring, a.k.a. Dayspring said he handed Hill $5,000 in cash outside a restaurant in Avila Beach not long after the vote, according to the plea agreement. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window), Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window), Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window), https://www.independent.com/2022/06/01/central-coast-cannabis-kingpin-sentenced-to-22-months-in-bribery-scandal/, The Slow Road to Fresh Air in the Carpinteria Valley, Get a Whiff of This: How Some Carpinterians Learned to Sniff Pot for Science, Carpinteria Pot Wars: A Dutch Clean-Air Technology Gives Residents Some Hope. The former executive director of the Democratic Party of Orange County has agreed to plead guilty to a felony charge for attempting to defraud one of her political consultancy firms Central District of California Shoals did not respond to that offer at the dinner, prosecutors said. Federal prosecutors downplayed the value of Daysprings work as an informant, saying it had led to no new investigations or arrests. By 2013, Dayspring was supplying an estimated 30 legal dispensaries in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, his attorney wrote. Subscribe The result? Extension of timeframe seems reasonable and probably no one else in until everyone has been deemed complete., Dayspring responded that Hill was the man., On Dec. 12, 2018, Hill told Dayspring by text that the board approved the extension, to which Dayspring replied, Thank God . He paid Hill an additional $9,000 in cash through the following year, the plea agreement says. The Mayor at the time Heidi Harmon seemingly unwittingly helped structure the selection process and criteria to favor Dayspring and his co-conspirators. Everyone else is at home working on their computer doing whatever, selectively answering their messages or in bed asleep until their secret phone rings? Helios Raphael Dayspring, who goes by the name "Bobby Dayspring," was charged in federal court with one count of bribery and one count of subscribing to a false 2018 income tax return that . Lock Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Dayspring had one goal: build a cannabis empire, prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memorandum. When asked if Hill would have faced charges were he still alive, U.S. DOJ spokesman Thom Mrozek said, I cannot answer that question.. He pleaded guilty in July to bribery and filing a false tax return. The FBI is still investigating the matter as part of what it calls an ongoing public corruption investigation in San Luis Obispo County.. Director of Media Relations There are also questions that can weed out the wrong lawyer for the cannabis operator. Dayspring has agreed to surrender in this case and make his first appearance in United States District Court in Los Angeles on August 25. Daysprings tax practices should serve as a lesson to those in the cannabis business. It will continue to be a black eye on the County and legal weed industry. The city later awarded Dayspring a single permit. Authorities ruled Hills death a suicide. Grover Beach City Manager Matthew Bronson said the city needs more information and to do an internal review of the matter before it can be in a position to comment on the situation. Supervisor Adam Hill a passionate if abrasively outspoken champion of the underdog on the dais $29,000 in cash and $3,000 in money order payments in exchange for Hills vote to keep Daysprings operations exempt from a county moratorium on new cultivation permits. We'll see what we can do. The attempted $100,000 bribe took place during a dinner meeting in September 2017. Dayspring, a business partner and the citys mayor, who wasnt identified in the plea agreement, met at a restaurant in Arroyo Grande in 2017. San Luis Obispo County marijuana mogul Helios Dayspring surrendered to the Federal Correctional Institution in Mendota (FCI Mendota) last week to begin a 22 month sentence for bribery and tax . In the end, his efforts to secure the loyalty of politicians would do him in. According to the plea agreement filed in U.S. District Court Wednesday, Dayspring operated and had a controlling interest in multiple cannabis farms and dispensaries that required approval from SLO County and the city of Grover Beach. Hill then solicited more bribes; he was given $3,000 in 2016 and $5,000 in 2017, the filing says. A smart federal prosecutor will bring in an IRS special agent to join a public corruption investigation and investigate the tax angle. ? and Dayspring responded, we are the industry., In 2017, Dayspring also attempted to bribe the then-mayor of Grover Beach, John Shoals, referred to in the plea agreement as Mayor 1.. Tony Biasotti Helios "Bobby" Dayspring, 35, appeared via Zoom before Judge Andre Birotte Jr. in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California to enter guilty pleas to one count of federal . Shoals did not respond to the offer, the plea agreement states. Text message: "Tomorrow is your favorite County Supervisor's birthday. A lock ( Support the Santa Barbara Independent through a long-term or a single contribution. He also underreported income on returns filed from 2014 to 2018, according to the agreement. The filing adds that Dayspring and Hill held a political fundraiser at Hills home where $13,000 was raised in June 2019. Helios Raphael Dayspring, founder and former CEO of the Natural Healing Center, has agreed to plead guilty to several felony charges, pay $3.4 million in restitution to the IRS, and cooperate with an ongoing investigation. ", COUNTY SUPERVISOR: "Got it. Have you ever worked as a federal prosecutor? The authorities also discovered that $5,000 cash from Dayspring had been provided to the birthday celebrant. The next day the Board of Supervisors voted 5 to 0 to extend the abeyances. ciaran.mcevoy@usdoj.gov A San Luis Obispo County cannabis grower and dispensary owner bribed the late County Supervisor Adam Hill and attempted to bribe the mayor of Grover Beach, and will plead guilty to federal bribery and tax crimes. {"requests":{"event":"https:\/\/www.noozhawk.com\/wp-content\/plugins\/newspack-popups\/includes\/..\/api\/campaigns\/index.php"},"triggers":{"trackPageview":{"on":"visible","request":"event","visibilitySpec":{"selector":"#c00b","visiblePercentageMin":50,"totalTimeMin":250,"continuousTimeMin":100},"extraUrlParams":{"popup_id":"id_234460","cid":"CLIENT_ID(newspack-cid)"}},"formSubmitSuccess":{"on":"amp-form-submit-success","request":"event","selector":"#c00b .wp-block-jetpack-mailchimp form","extraUrlParams":{"popup_id":"id_234460","cid":"CLIENT_ID(newspack-cid)","mailing_list_status":"subscribed","email":"${formFields[email]}","esp":"mailchimp"}}}} Specifically, defendant told (Hill) in a text message that its really important u guys extend the timeframe for submission and dont allow other people in yet referring to the countys impending vote on Dec. 11, 2018, to extend the abeyances on enforcement action against cannabis cultivators, the filing reads. An official website of the United States government. What nailed the coffin shut for Dayspring, in addition to the financial record analysis, was his overuse of the text message function on his iPhone. Helios Dayspring, owner of Lemoore's Natural Healing Center cannabis dispensary and lounge, pled guilty to bribing SLO County Supervisor Adam Hill. On April 6, 2019, Hill texted Dayspring and one of his employees, your industry should give me one giant French kiss wrapped in money after my work today., In another text, Hill asked, Wheres the industry support for my reelection? Dayspring did this, his plea agreement states, with the understanding that, as opportunities arose, Hill would vote in favor of permits and legislation benefiting Daysprings cannabis farms and dispensaries; lobby other public officials in support of such legislation; and give Dayspring non-public information regarding cannabis issues before the county government. Before the meeting, Daysprings business partner said the mayor had been pushing for a bribe in exchange for granting their application for two dispensary permits. Ciaran McEvoy Dayspring, 35, owns cannabis farms in San Luis Obispo County as well as the Natural Healing Center dispensaries in San Luis Obispo, Morro Bay and Grover Beach. Marijuana mogul Helios Dayspring pleaded guilty to one count of bribery and one count of filing a false tax return on Friday in U.S. District Court for the . No money changed hands, and the city later awarded one permit to Daysprings dispensary. Matthew Ormseth is a reporter for the Los Angeles Times. San Luis Obispo County marijuana mogul Helios Dayspring surrendered to the Federal Correctional Institution in Mendota (FCI Mendota) last week to begin a 22 month sentence for bribery and tax fraud. In the end, he amassed an empire he valued at $30 million. Harmon was having a sexual relationship with Quinn Brady, her assistant/campaign manager at the time. The FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation investigated this matter, which is part of an ongoing public corruption investigation in San Luis Obispo County. Daysprings illicit activities spread to city government as well, federal prosecutors allege. Hill also requested Dayspring take him out to dinner for his birthday, which Dayspring paid for, and was then given another $5,000 in cash. In September 2017, Dayspring, an unnamed business associate and Shoals referred to only as Mayor 1 met at a restaurant in Arroyo Grande. Please reload the page and try again. Prosecutors often call tax charges, the easy low-hanging fruit because once a targets expenditures are compared with the income reported, if the disparity is extreme the feds are likely have an easy-to-prove tax prosecution. Shoals never responded to the offer, and Dayspring didnt pay the bribe, the release said. 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