Ruben Kihuen Tied To FBI Investigation

Nevada congressional candidate Ruben Kihuen is in hot water. Kihuen’s employer, the Ramirez Group has been publicly identified by the Las Vegas Review-Journal as tied to an FBI corruption investigation.  In 2014, Kihuen joined the Ramirez Group, and earned $55,846.12 from the company last year.

Significantly, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported last night that Kihuen’s employer is being investigated for crimes committed during a time that overlapped with Kihuen’s employment:

“A politically connected public relations firm has been tied to the corruption investigation of Las Vegas City Councilman Ricki Barlow, the Las Vegas Review-Journal has learned. FBI agents recently subpoenaed records from Barlow related to his campaign and business dealings with the Ramirez Group and its owners in 2015 and 2016, according to a source close to the investigation.”

The investigation centers around allegations that consulting firms were allegedly paying kickbacks to a Las Vegas city councilman:

“Investigators are attempting to determine whether Barlow, who represents the city’s Ward 5, received kickbacks for any of the consulting expenses his campaign paid to McCoy’s company, according to a source.”

In addition to working for the scandal-tarred firm, Kihuen has also employed the firm’s founder as a consultant for his congressional race. Further establishing Kihuen’s ties to this FBI investigation, Andres Ramirez, his consultant, gave the campaign a $2,700 contribution. Nevada may have been a state accustomed to corrupt Democrats in the past, but in 2016 these potentially criminal ties will be taken seriously.