![]() ![]() In his plea agreement, Dayspring admitted that from 2016 to 2019, he gave cash and gifts to Hill in exchange for his support when the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors voted on permits and land use regulations for growing cannabis, including votes that allowed Dayspring’s farms to operate before they obtained final permits. ![]() After his guilty plea, he transferred ownership of the dispensaries to his girlfriend, Valnette Garcia, who sold three of them earlier in May to Glass House Brands, a Carpinteria-based cannabis company, for $22.6 million in cash and stock. “To accomplish that goal, he would not let anything get in his way, including the law.”ĭayspring, 36, owned and operated multiple cannabis farms as well as retail dispensaries under the Natural Healing Center name. Attorney’s Office.ĭayspring pleaded guilty last year to bribery and filing false income tax returns, admitting to paying the late Supervisor Adam Hill around $32,000 in bribes in exchange for Hill’s votes on permitting cannabis growing operations and related matters at the county level.ĭayspring “had one goal: build a cannabis empire,” prosecutors wrote in a sentencing memorandum. Dayspring has also paid $3.4 million to the IRS as restitution for the tax crime, which is the approximate amount he underpaid his federal income taxes between 20, according to a news release from the U.S. Helios Dayspring, who also goes by “Bobby,” was sentenced on May 27 by U.S. The Natural Healing Center, with Val Garcia now as CEO, also operates a shop in Lemoore and plans to open another in Turlock.The cannabis grower who bribed a San Luis Obispo County supervisor has been sentenced to 22 months in federal prison. ![]() However, city officials said the decision would remain in place, although the business has the opportunity to seek a judicial review within 90 days. Officials said a review of the Natural Healing Center's application found that Dayspring submitted false or misleading information about his criminal misconduct, stating that he never spent money for illegal purposes, falsified any documents, or was involved in tax fraud or evasion.īefore a San Luis Obispo City Council meeting on October 19, NHC employees held a rally, encouraging city leaders to reverse the decision and allow the cannabis dispensary to open its planned storefront on Broad Street. A second location opened in Morro Bay in April.Ī third NHC location was planned in the city of San Luis Obispo, but in early October, city officials announced that the business' commercial cannabis operator permit was being terminated and it would no longer be allowed to open. It was the first NHC dispensary to open in San Luis Obispo County. ![]() The Natural Healing Center was ultimately awarded a single dispensary permit to open a storefront in Grover Beach. Shoals reportedly did not respond to the attempted bribe. Officials say one of those was a vote that ultimately benefited Dayspring by extending a temporary hold on enforcement of cannabis regulations for certain growers.Ĭourt documents show that Dayspring also offered Shoals $100,000 in exchange for securing two cannabis dispensary permits in the City of Grover Beach. San Luis Obispo County officials said a review of cannabis legislation and land use permits after the charges against Dayspring were announced found two questionable decisions that could be linked to the bribery of Hill. Plus, he could be ordered to pay nearly $3.5 million in restitution to the IRS.Īccording to court documents, between 20, Dayspring paid Hill $29,000 in cash, gave him cannabis products, and paid for multiple meals with the understanding that Hill would vote and advocate for cannabis legislation beneficial to Dayspring's cannabis farms. He faces a maximum sentence of 13 years in prison, three years probation, and a $500,000 fine. He was initially charged in federal court in July after reportedly admitting to bribing late San Luis Obispo County District 3 Supervisor Adam Hill, attempting to bribe former Grover Beach Mayor John Shoals, and failing to report millions of dollars in income to the IRS.ĭayspring is scheduled to be sentenced on February 11, 2022. The cannabis business owner appeared in federal court by video on Friday, Oct. Natural Healing Center founder Helios Dayspring has pleaded guilty to bribery and filing a false income tax return. ![]()
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