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Top officials of the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission (OLCC) have been implicated in a criminal investigation probing allegations that they used their positions with the state’s liquor regulatory agency to block rare, highly coveted bourbons from public consumption. To overcome violated the rules of ethics. personal use.
OLCC officials, including the agency’s recently fired executive director, allegedly sent rare bottles of bourbon to specific stores, where they would make reservations to purchase libations on demand and sell them to the public once off-duty. Will not get a chance to beat. This.
While the officers involved said they paid for rare bottles of bourbon, including aged Pappy Van Winkle, which can cost thousands of dollars per bottle, their knowledge and connections could be used contrary to Oregon’s ethics laws. which prevents public officials from using confidential information. for personal gain.
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Whiskey glass with ice. — Officials with Oregon’s liquor regulatory agency are under criminal investigation for removing rare bourbon away from public access for personal consumption. (iStock)
Documents from the OLCC’s internal investigation were first reported by The Oregonian/OregonLive. Those documents showed that the agency’s distribution manager said that rare wine diversions were “a long-standing practice at the agency” with the executive director’s tacit approval.
Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum said Friday that a criminal investigation is ongoing and that a civil investigation requested Wednesday by Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek would be delayed until the criminal investigation is concluded. OLCC spokesman Mark Pettinger told the AP that the agency will “fully follow up on the criminal investigation” that the attorney general’s office is conducting.
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Steven Marks, OLCC’s executive director, resigned in early February at the request of Kotek after being caught in a preferential treatment scheme. According to OLCC documents released by The Oregonian, Marks admitted he preferred and missed Pappy Van Winkle’s 23-year-old whiskey.
However, Marks stated that he “acquired the product in a manner that was once accessible by the public” and “controversially violated the spirit of Oregon ethics laws and state policy by using his official position at OLCC for personal gain.” has been violated.”
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Five other OLCC managers were implicated in the scheme. Chris Mytton, director of the agency’s Distilled Spirits Program, told the OLCC investigator that he has acted as a “facilitator” for clients, commission staff and legislators hundreds of times as part of his job duties. He did not name any of the MLAs involved in the arrangement in the documents released.
Following the repeal of Prohibition in 1932, the state of Oregon established the OLCC. The agency regulates when and where hard liquor can be sold in the state. It expanded following the legalization of recreational marijuana in 2015, which prompted it to change its name from the Oregon Liquor Control Commission to the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission. Beer and wine are outside the purview of the OLCC and can be purchased at grocery stores in Oregon.
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The OLCC is in charge of purchasing and distributing liquor to stores, all of which charge the same price for a given bottle that the agency charges across the state. The OLCC also sets limits on how many liquor stores can be opened and where they can be located.
For some extremely rare bottles of wine, the OLCC began holding a “chance to buy” lottery in 2018. The odds of winning are based on the number of entries. For example, the odds of winning the chance to buy one of five bottles of OLCC’s Pappy Van Winkle Family Reserve 23 Year Old bourbon in December 2022 were 1 in 4,150 with 20,748 entries.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Source: www.bing.com
