The Irvine City Council Jan. 24 failed to pass a motion to launch an independent investigation after political consultant Melahat Rafiei last week—in a plea agreement relating to an FBI corruption probe—admitted engaging in a bribery scheme in Irvine in 2018.
Rafiei, 45, also agreed to plead guilty to one felony count of attempted wire fraud against one of the cannabis dispensaries seeking her service, according to the Department of Justice. She founded Progressive Solutions Consulting, a Long Beach-based political consulting firm where she worked with cannabis industry clients and local politicians.
In her plea deal, the former executive director of the Democratic Party of Orange County admitted that between April and June 2018, she agreed to give at least $225,000 in bribes to two Irvine city councilors—in exchange for introducing and passing a city ordinance allowing her clients to open a retail cannabis store in the city….