Zach Lahn Caught Lying About His Running Mate’s Criminal Investigation
Zach Lahn: “He’s not under criminal investigation”
Black Hawk County Sheriff: “I can confirm that we have an investigation open involving Derek Wulf”
DES MOINES – KCCI caught Zach Lahn lying about the fact that his running mate Derek Wulf is under criminal investigation and has been accused of theft and fraud.
Lahn has falsely claimed that Wulf is “not under criminal investigation,” attacking reporters and local law enforcement instead of answering simple questions about Wulf’s predatory business practices and accusations of defrauding farmers. But according to KCCI, the Black Hawk County Sheriff confirmed they “have an investigation open involving Derek Wulf,” which the county attorney is looking into.
Lahn is refusing to answer questions about why he missed major red flags with his running mate and has provided zero evidence to support his false claim that Wulf is not under criminal investigation.
From Iowa Democratic Party spokesperson Terra Hernandez:
“After lying to Iowans about living in Kansas and his career as a political operative, it’s no surprise that Zach Lahn is lying again. Lahn picked a status quo politician who is accused of ripping off local farmers and businesses as his running mate, and now he’s attacking law enforcement and reporters instead of being transparent with voters. Iowans deserve honest answers about Derek Wulf’s ongoing criminal investigation and predatory business practices, but they won’t get that from Lahn.”
Read and watch more from KCCI here, or key points below:
- The Des Moines Register reported Sept. 4 that the Black Hawk County Sheriff’s Office had opened an investigation into Wulf that remained active.
- KCCI asked Lahn about that reporting during an interview last week for “KCCI 8 News Close Up.”
- “I would just say number one, the Des Moines Register is not telling the truth on this,” Lahn said. “He’s not under criminal investigation.”
- “At the end of this, nobody’s going to lose a dime, and you’ll see that this is very similar to what I see farmers going through all across the state,” Lahn said.
- The Register rejected Lahn’s criticism and said it stood by its reporting, calling its coverage “accurate and thorough, based on multiple sources and public records.”
- Following the interview with Lahn, KCCI contacted Neff directly to clarify whether his office had an investigation involving Wulf.
- “I can confirm that we have an investigation open involving Derek Wulf, but because it’s still ongoing, I can’t discuss the details of it,” Neff initially told KCCI last week.
- Neff provided additional information Monday, identifying WCF Financial as the source of the Feb. 6 report and saying his office had investigated the matter and turned its findings over to the Black Hawk County Attorney’s Office.
- KCCI asked Lahn’s campaign what information Lahn was relying on when he said Wulf was “not under criminal investigation.”
- KCCI also asked when Lahn first learned the sheriff’s office had an investigation involving Wulf, whether he knew about it before selecting Wulf as his running mate, and whether Lahn or anyone with his campaign had received information about the investigation from the sheriff’s office.
- The campaign did not directly answer those questions.
- Lahn campaign spokesperson Dan Capodilupo instead sent KCCI a statement Monday saying in part, “Derek Wulf has not broken the law and any suggestion otherwise is nonsense.”
- Capodilupo also called the investigation a “politicized witch hunt.”
- KCCI sent Neff’s latest statements to Lahn’s campaign Monday and provided another opportunity to respond. As of Monday evening, the campaign had not provided additional information explaining the basis for Lahn’s statement that Wulf was “not under criminal investigation.”
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