An FBI affidavit has been made public which identifies a person from an influential company as a member of a “cabal” that steers Anaheim’s government.
That company is Disneyland Resort.
The employee, Carrie Nocella, is the Director of External Affairs.
They are both now part of a public federal corruption probe.
Nocella allegedly helped to script a statement that was read by a public official before City Council could vote on the details.
She has not yet been accused with any wrongdoing.
However, she and Disneyland Resort are connected to a larger investigation which resulted in Harry Sidhu resigning as Anaheim’s mayor.
The company is said to have enormous influence over the city.
An FBI affidavit made public last week identified an employee of an influential, unnamed company as being a key participant in a “cabal” steering Anaheim’s government.
The company is Disneyland Resort, according to a person familiar with the investigation https://t.co/2kT3ILWzWH
— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) May 24, 2022
The LA Times broke the story:
An FBI affidavit made public last week identified an employee of an influential, unnamed company as being a key participant in a “cabal” steering Anaheim’s government.
The employee of the firm, called “Company A” in the affidavit that’s part of a federal public corruption probe, helped script a statement read by an elected official before the City Council voted to issue bonds and provided input on whom to invite to a covert retreat for community powerbrokers.
Company A is Disneyland Resort, according to a person familiar with the investigation, and the employee is Disneyland Resort Director of External Affairs Carrie Nocella.
Though neither the company nor Nocella have been accused of wrongdoing, their connection to the wide-ranging investigation that led to Harry Sidhu resigning as Anaheim mayor Monday underscores the immense influence the company wields in the city of 350,000 with a budget fueled by millions of visitors each year to the Disneyland Resort.
The company has long played a dominant role in Anaheim politics. Some current and former council members, local activists and a past mayor say Disneyland Resort has parlayed its influence into lucrative tax breaks at the expense of city residents and bankrolled friendly politicians with generous campaign donations. Disney has pushed back against such criticism, arguing that the resort provides the city with an important economic engine and is a job creator.
Disneyland Resort Director of External Affairs Carrie Nocella is the employee mentioned in the affidavit, according to a person familiar with the probe.
The affidavit says the employee also suggested who to invite to a secret retreat for community leaders https://t.co/wcFttsj2fJ
— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) May 24, 2022
Wow! @wsj names Disney & it's external affairs exec Carrie Nocella in this article about FBI's Anaheim/Irvine public corruption probe https://t.co/5uODonObok
— 𝙻𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚢 𝚃𝚎𝚗𝚗𝚎𝚢 🟧🟦🗣#GoodTrouble (@LarryTenney) May 26, 2022
The Walt Disney Co. has become entangled in a corruption scandal unfolding in Anaheim, the southern California city where its Disneyland Resort is based, that this week prompted its mayor to resign https://t.co/enCt8n4igC
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) May 26, 2022
Disney power broker at the heart of Anaheim ‘cabal’ https://t.co/MRelkOSf7j
— Around World journal (@aw_journal2021) May 26, 2022
Disney exec, Anaheim officials under FBI probe for ‘influencing’ city politics – https://t.co/lrh0ncip3K #OANN
— One America News (@OANN) May 26, 2022
One America News has more details:
The probe comes amid a sweeping probe into broader corruption allegations within the city after Mayor Harry Sidhu was accused of leveraging the sale the Anaheim Angels Baseball Stadium to the team’s owner in exchange for campaign contributions. The agency asserted Nocella played a pivotal role in securing that deal. Sidhu resigned from his role on Monday and the City Council voted to void the stadium deal on Tuesday.
Disney has played a large role in the economy of the region with 2018 reports indicating Disney had an annual $8.5 billion economic impact on the surrounding region, including the employment of more than 80,000 people.
AWWWWWWW SHIT!
Bribery scandal plus Disney? YOU DON'T SAY! https://t.co/zSWAjRl3bD
— Eric Garland (@ericgarland) May 25, 2022
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