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OCF Complaint
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Respondent: Ward 2 Candidate

Brooke Pinto

1219 Q Street NW

Washington, D.C. 20009

Request for Office of Campaign Finance Investigation

Brooke Pinto, candidate for Ward 2 Council seat in Washington, D.C., may be in violation of District of Columbia campaign finance law according to an article reported in Washington City Paper published on June 11, 2020. Brooke Pinto served as her campaign’s own treasurer so she has full knowledge of all financial dealings regarding her campaign.

Her campaign may have used a house at 1300 Q Street NW that may have served as a campaign headquarters but was never reported to the Office of Campaign Finance (OCF). Two other candidates in the race whe duration of Pinto's campaign (additionally, Pinto's mother receives a homestead deduction on a property in Palm Beach, Florida). Pinto, per her own admission to the City Paper, never executed a sublease. Yet in direct contradiction to what she told the City Paper, Pinto wrote an email to supporters on March 11 (see above) that she used campaign contributions to establish a campaign headquarters at 1300 Q St NW. No payment for rent or office space was reported to OCF.

Thus, it appears that Pinto was using 1300 Q St NW as a campaign office, and may have accepted an unreported and illegal in-kind contribution totalling up to $975,000 from her parents.

Count Three: Possible Violation of § 1–1163.35.(2)(A) Reporting Disclosures

For failing to list this alleged in-kind contribution on all of her OCF reports, Brooke Pinto may be in violation of § 1–1163.35.(2)(A), which states:

 

A candidate or other person charged with the responsibility under this subchapter for the filing of any reports or other documents required to be filed pursuant to this subchapter who fails, neglects, or omits to file any such report or document at the time and in the manner prescribed by law, or who omits or incorrectly states any of the information required by law to be included in such report or document, in addition to any other penalty provided by law, may be assessed a civil penalty of not more than $4,000 for the first offense and not more than $10,000 for the second and each subsequent offense

According to the City Paper article, Pinto's parents rented the house. Pinto, per her own admission to the City Paper, never executed a sublease. Yet in direct contradiction to what she told the City Paper, Pinto wrote an email to supporters on March 11 (see above that she used campaign contributions to establish a campaign headquarters at 1300 Q St NW.) No payment for rent or office space was ever reported to OCF.

 

Thus, it appears that Pinto may have accepted an unreported and illegal in-kind contribution totaling up to $975,000 from her parents.

Conclusion

There may be a missing $975,000 house that was not reported by the Brooke Pinto campaign. I ask that you uphold the integrity of our election process by thoroughly investigating the claims laid out above and assign penalties if you deem them appropriate.  

Sincerely,

Lauren Wolfe

2833 Alabama Ave SE #30736

Washington, D.C. 20020

D.C. Bar # 1048660

Lauren Wolfe is an attorney who specializes in travel consumer protection issues. She believes in transparency in government and that everyone should be able to take part in the political process. Wolfe speaks German and has worked for major D.C. law firms ensuring compliance of American and German corporations as it relates to sanctions and legal issues regarding anti-corruption and anti-money laundering.

Amendment One - June 26, 2020

o used office space for a campaign office, Jordan Grossman and John Fanning, both reported their rental space expenses in their OCF filings. All other candidates used their home as their campaign headquarters which is typical in a council race.

Brooke Pinto reports to live in a home at 1219 Q Street NW. This address is used as her campaign address on her website but on official campaign emails to voters, as well as questionnaires the candidate completed from organizations such as AFL-CIO and DFER, the address 1300 Q Street NW is listed as the campaign headquarters. The sale of this house shows this was no typical real estate transaction as it was purchased and is now owned by a shielded LLC. This may be violating the District’s new law that requires the disclosure of the beneficial owners of an LLC formed in the District.

See: https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/new-d-c-law-will-require-disclosure-of-20675/

BROOKE PINTO’S CAMPAIGN MAY HAVE FAILED TO DISCLOSE IN OCF REPORTS A $975,000 HOUSE USED AS A CAMPAIGN HEADQUARTERS, WHICH WAS LIKELY PURCHASED IN CASH, AND RUN THROUGH A COMPLEX NETWORK OF LLCS.

Count One: Possible violation of §1-1163.33 Contribution limitations

The timeline for this house, according to public records, is as follows:

January 29: 1300 Q St NW is listed for sale for $1,200,000 a few weeks after its owners moved to Ward 3. The home is empty and sold without any furniture.

Feb 13: Brooke Pinto announces her campaign. Pinto lists on her filing that she lives at a house at 1219 Q Street NW. She does not own this home according to documents so she is likely renting the house. Another couple, who according to public information does not live in D.C., is claiming the Office of Tax and Revenue’s Homestead Exemption. The couple who owns the house, Sean Kelly and Olivia Ma, claim on LinkedIn to live in San Francisco.  

Feb 16: 1300 Q St NW is listed as pending on Redfin.

Feb 18: 1300 Q St NW LLC is listed as formed with the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs (DCRA), with February 18, 2020 listed as the commencement date, and Karan Keith Agarwal of Silverstone Investment Group LLC as the registered agent.

Feb 24: 1300 Q St NW LLC is listed as registration/effective date of February 24, 2020 with DCRA. Registered address appears to be located at both 1300 Q Street NW and 1712 N Street NW according to Property Quest. 1712 N Street NW is owned by Scott Royal Smith. On Scott Royal Smith’s LinkedIn and Twitter, he advertises that he works for Royal Legal Solutions. The Royal Legal Solutions website advertises that it assists clients with asset protection by forming anonymous trusts and shell companies.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/7BGr_eJYfT0ix4Svb17vs7EvYo65LgdGbalOzS9SzjCl76qpKy_Or79fjoQLPVGWs-V2LviELiHFQyC_ResWCpCBVE84OQMHGd8HEc5TZEnWgrExPd62VaV6n3DnynhePvJ_i0TW

 

Information on 1712 N St NW 

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/rnYby-byOsA4njplimxaBT4jII5B_aGOqlWcgi-d0jlppBez61Clwy0ZrOR4k7n0lZ2B7F-zuiquuI1yH5xIvM2a_GF-MckUtTGAJZDlhK8ap8m3K6D6nRHwN22p9jXoefEYWUTv

 

Feb 27: 1300 Q St NW is listed as sold on Redfin, and the Recorder of Deeds has the deed on the house executed on February 27, 2020 between David Leonard Brandon and 1300 Q St NW LLC. Note this house goes for $225,000 under asking price. That is not typical for a large house in Logan Circle. The seller likely benefited some other way from the sale, one possibility is that it was an all cash sale. Coldwell Banker notes that the Real Broker, LLC brokered the closing with Kyra Erika Agarwal serving as the broker. Kyra Erika Agarwal appears to be both a real estate broker and she is also listed as Chief Innovation Officer at Silverstone Hospitality Group. She has no mention of being her own broker on her LinkedIn page. She could be working as a broker for Silverstone Hospitality Group. Silverstone Hospitality Group’s website is very unclear as to what they actually do. Silverstone Hospitality Group advertises on its website “Silverstone invests in a collection of brands and IP, and ultimately distributes that content through various owned and controlled real estate channels.” Kyra Erika Agarwal lists the 1300 Q Street property on her real estate website as a property she is offering through the “Silverstone Investment Group.” Kyra Erika Agarwal’s contact address is listed as 825 10th Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20001. This is the same address that Karan Keith Agarwal lists as his contact address listed in the 1300 Q Street NW LLC documents. Kyra Agarwal and Karan Agarwal may be brother and sister according to Instagram.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/260PZIHWns3TdFIAQnh2ibfroH7S3yDnawC2UBrBu8KV9LTppT3UL10SeUHYKomz1AJvyYueSXmGmg0FHBy-b_IViax5leccNkGufTbfXtVyvfeqbz501sz2xxxL12Q_HjvJFaE-

March 3: Brooke Pinto fills out AFL-CIO questionnaire, lists 1300 Q St NW as her campaign office and signs and dates the questionnaire on March 3, 2020  

March 5: Brooke Pinto sends out a campaign email inviting people to her 1300 Q St NW Campaign HQ for a March 21 event.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/vJ4JEXftNzDHsAEr-nThWxEqm3iv0uMOjsXBDrIqPPP3CwWpfBzBe-ui0o-RqNaPyPGIM4qCqzcTjyTioETDwdeqZk7rb4vOFsrKa1XqNQD97MGbKEFsM9qZWeVV4fdxwitAEkdF

March 10: Brooke Pinto, who is her own treasurer for both the regular and special elections, files first campaign finance reports for regular and special elections, yet does not report payment for office space or an in-kind contribution for office space. Also on March 10, 2020 Brooke Pinto submitted a questionnaire to Democrats for Education Reform (DFER) with her campaign headquarters listed as 1300 Q Street NW.

https://efiling.ocf.dc.gov/FinancialReports/EntireReport/28730/PCCCC2207165_2020%20March%2010th%20Report_%20Original

March 11: 1300 Q St NW is sold from David Leonard Brandon to 1300 Q St NW LLC

March 11: Pinto files an amended March 10 report for the regular election and there are still no payments for office space or in-kind contributions for office space.

March 11: Brooke sends out a campaign email explicitly stating that campaign contributions have allowed her to open a campaign HQ at 1300 Q St NW:

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-95vaR60j6i6yICYLje41c2mzRavBY4c5BTAFVE1MwesMcoMob4_U3PznVFwv0i6_DUrLCNK5ehPucQGaf_YKwaW7eJufgcgYbnq6_GisUyifDcBOlKL-PUrrFa9sdMgniQroj2R

May 26: Brooke again amends her March 10 report for the regular election, still no payments for office space or in-kind contributions for office space.

May 26: Brooke files an 8-day pre-election report, does not report payments for office space or in-kind contributions for office space.

May 28: 1300 Q Street NW Property brought to Historic Preservation Review Board. The document noting the meeting states “Architect Jim Foster (Arcadia Design), representing Karan Agarwal, seeks conceptual design review for construction of a rear addition on a rowhouse located at the corner of 13th and Q Streets in the 14th Street Historic District.”

May 30: Photo taken of Brooke Pinto standing outside the 1300 Q Street property which is covered in her yard signs and has a balloon arch that says “Brooke4Ward2.” There is no balloon arch in any OCF report.

June 10: Brooke Pinto amends her 8 day pre-preliminary report, and also amends her March 10 regular election report and March 10 special election report.  None of these reports list expenditures for office space, nor in-kind contributions for office space. She did not file her June 10 regular or special election reports on June 10. All other candidates have submitted their June 10 reports.

https://efiling.ocf.dc.gov/FinancialReports/EntireReport/28942/PCCCC2207165_2020%20March%2010th%20Report_%20Amendment3

https://efiling.ocf.dc.gov/FinancialReports/EntireReport/28934/PCCCC2207166_2020%20March%2010th%20Report_%20Amendment1

June 11: Washington City Paper publishes an article on Brooke Pinto. Regarding the house, they write “Early on in the campaign, it looked like Pinto’s parents were set to help their daughter establish a campaign headquarters, too. While Pinto lives on Q Street NW near Logan Circle, and put that address on her campaign lawn signs, her parents started renting a house down the street shortly after Pinto announced her bid. That property, at 1300 Q Street NW, hit the market in late January, and on February 18, a new LLC entitled “1300 Q Street NW LLC” formed. The house was sold to o this LLC on February 27, and less than a week later, Pinto listed it as her campaign’s address on her AFL-CIO questionnaire. She tells City Paper she was “intending to initiate a sub-lease,” but changed her plans when the pandemic worsened and her campaign went remote. Her mother returned to D.C. last week to stay in the house she’s still renting, and put up large balloons outside that stated “Brooke4Ward2.” This statement from Pinto may not align with the public documents regarding the 1300 Q Street NW property.

June 11: Adam Crain applies for construction/alteration and repair permits with DCRA for 1300 Q Street NW.

Count Two: Possible Violation of §1-1163.33(j)(1) Contribution Limitations Related to Families

According to the City Paper article, Pinto's parents rented the house, yet lived in Connecticut during thRespondent: Ward 2 Candidate

Brooke Pinto

 

Amended OCF Investigation Request – June 26, 2020

 

There is new information regarding my previously filed OCF investigation request so I’d like to amend the request previously filed Doc. No. OCF-INV 2020-011.

 

The following information should be added to the request regarding the Brooke Pinto campaign.

 

1)        The 1300 Q Street NW was paid for with $975,000 cash. This all cash sale was confirmed by a DC real estate agent who provided the screenshot below.

 

 

 

2)        DCRA has no Basic Business License (BBL) for 1300 Q Street NW. DCRA was unable to give me any documentation to prove that no license existed. If the house was rented as Brooke Pinto claimed in a Washington City Paper interview, it was done without the required DCRA permits. The house may have never been rented at all.

 

3)        Cody McBeth, a real estate agent who is tied to several Silverstone properties, was actively using his Instagram to advertise for the Brooke Pinto campaign. According to McBeth’s LinkedIn, he is a Williams|Ballard agent. He also appeared on a mailer that the campaign sent out endorsing Brooke Pinto from his perspective of being a small business owner. There is an issue here if he is going to potentially profit from the upcoming flip of her possible former campaign headquarters.

·          Source: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cody-mcbeth-0232466/

 

 

McBeth featured in Brooke’s Instagram story Re: Team Brooke

 

In Campaign mailer as a “small business owner”

 

Has a testimonial on Brooke’s website

 

 

Cody McBeth’s Instagram references Silverstone properties such as The Quintus and the Kent

 

Cody McBeth is listed as the agent for multiple Silverstone properties:

https://dc.urbanturf.com/pipeline/858/The_Quintus

http://frankly.com/DCDC467768 (SOLD)

https://www.compass.com/listing/1402-c-street-southeast-washington-dc-20003/385275142562273025/ (CLOSED)

 

(Silverstone Instagram for Reference)

 

 

 

 

4)        Karan Agarwal donated $500 to the regular election of Brooke Pinto’s campaign on May 28, 2020. Karan Agarwal is listed as the registered agent of 1300 Q Street NW LLC with DCRA, the LLC that was used to purchase the house in all cash.

 

 

5)        Brooke Pinto has failed to list the employers and occupations for many of her contributors, on all reports filed thus far for both her regular election and special election campaigns, as required under § 1–1163.07(5)(A). Compelling Ms. Pinto to list all of her contributors' employers and occupations in accordance with the law may shed additional light on whether her contributors have ties to any of the entities referenced in this complaint.

 

 

 

Sincerely,

Lauren Wolfe

2833 Alabama Ave SE #30736

Washington, D.C. 20020

D.C. Bar # 1048660

Amendment Two - August 6, 2020

Respondent: Ward 2 Candidate

Brooke Pinto

 

 

Amended OCF Investigation Request – August 6, 2020

 

There is new information regarding my previously filed OCF investigation request so I’d like to amend the request previously filed as Doc. No. OCF-INV 2020-011, as well as my amended request of June 26, 2020.

 

The following information should be added to the request regarding the Brooke Pinto campaign.

 

1)        It has recently come to my attention that the following two images were posted on June 1, 2020 on the brookepintoforward2 Instagram page, the Instagram page of Brooke Pinto’s campaign.

 

These images depict Brooke Pinto lawn signs, a “Brooke4Ward2'' balloon arch, a Brooke Pinto pink tent and banner listing her endorsements and a volunteer wearing a Brooke Pinto shirt at the 1300 Q St NW property. Her caption notes that the “6-ft-tall sign of me” on the 1300 Q St NW property should “do the trick” in reminding people to vote.

 

These images are currently visible on Brooke Pinto’s sister, Caren Pinto’s Twitter page, as well as on Brooke Pinto’s campaign Twitter page.

 

 

2)        My request for an investigation, Doc. No. OCF-INV 2020-011, did not include this Instagram post from the brookepintoforward2 Instagram page. However, it appears that after I filed my request, these images were deleted off of Ms. Pinto’s campaign Instagram page.

 

It should be noted that deleting a picture off of Instagram is a three-step process: one must first click on the three dots next to the picture, then select the delete option, and then select the delete button after a prompt asks if the user wants to delete the photo. Deletions would be highly unlikely to happen without intent.

 

3)        On June 26 I filed an amended request to OCF, with a screenshot from Ms. Pinto’s highlighted #TeamBrooke Instagram story featuring Cody McBeth, a realtor who endorsed Ms. Pinto who may be a business partner of 1300 Q St NW LLC registered agent Karan Agarwal.

 

As of today, Mr. McBeth’s support for Ms. Pinto has disappeared from the #TeamBrooke Instagram story. While this may be due to the fact that Mr. McBeth has since set his Instagram account to private, it may also be due to Ms. Pinto or a member of her campaign team deleting Mr. McBeth’s feature from her campaign Instagram page after the filing of my request.

 

I respectfully ask that OCF consider these newly discovered images of campaign activity on the 1300 Q St NW property, and to note that Ms. Pinto may have deleted evidence on Instagram regarding campaign work at the 1300 Q Street NW property.

 

Sincerely,

 

Lauren Wolfe

2833 Alabama Ave SE #30736

Washington, D.C. 20020

D.C. Bar # 1048660

 

 

Amendment 3 - September 1, 2020

Respondent: Ward 2 Candidate

Brooke Pinto

 

 

Amended OCF Investigation Request – September 1, 2020

 

There is new information regarding my previously filed OCF investigation request. Please amend the request previously filed as Doc. No. OCF-INV 2020-011, as well as my amended requests of June 26, 2020 and August 6, 2020.

 

The following information should be added to the request regarding the Brooke Pinto campaign.

 

1)        It has recently come to my attention that the following image was posted on Brooke Pinto’s campaign Facebook page on March 12, 2020, inviting the public to an event at the “Brooke Pinto for Ward 2 HQ: 1300 Q St NW.” Despite a state of emergency and a public health emergency being declared by Mayor Bowser the previous day, Ms. Pinto assures her readers that “as of now, this event is still on.”

 

Planning such an event at this house is unusual because the closing, as noted in the original request for an investigation, was on February 16, 2020. Typically, a closing takes one month. This process can be sped up and cash closings certainly help speed up the process. As noted previously, the house she used as her campaign headquarters was an all cash sale of $975,000. In a standard real estate transaction, the owner of the house would not gain possession of the house until March 16, 2020.

From the events listed here, it is likely the owner of the house, whoever that is, gained possession earlier than March 16th due to the cash sale. That person likely worked out some sort of arrangement with Brooke Pinto to use the house as a campaign headquarters. District residents should know who owned the house used as a campaign headquarters used by a Councilperson and what sort of arrangement was in place.

This photo shows that the house was not just listed as a campaign headquarters on questionnaires she filled out, but it was actively used to plan events before a standard DC real estate transaction would have even closed.  

 

2)        In my amended complaint on August 6, I provided screenshots and links of images that Ms. Pinto and her sister had posted on Twitter, depicting Brooke Pinto lawn signs, a “Brooke4Ward2'' balloon arch, a Brooke Pinto pink tent and banner listing her endorsements and a volunteer wearing a Brooke Pinto shirt at the 1300 Q St NW property.

 

Shortly after I posted a copy of my complaint on Twitter, both Brooke Pinto and her sister deleted the aforementioned tweets containing these images. This is now the second time that Brooke Pinto has deleted images depicting campaign activity at 1300 Q St NW after I filed amended investigation requests.

 

It should be noted that deleting a tweet is a three-step process: one must first click on an arrow in the corner of the tweet, then select the delete option, and then select the delete button after a prompt asks if the user wants to delete the photo. Deletions would be highly unlikely to happen without intent.

 

I respectfully ask that OCF consider this newly discovered advertisement referring to 1300 Q St NW as the “Brooke Pinto for Ward 2 Campaign HQ,” and to note that Ms. Pinto and her sister may have deleted evidence on Twitter regarding campaign work at the 1300 Q Street NW property.

 

Sincerely,

 

Lauren Wolfe

2833 Alabama Ave SE #30736

Washington, D.C. 20020

D.C. Bar # 1048660

Response to  Office of Campaign Finance’s Motion in the Matter of Brooke Pinto Docket No: OCF:INV 2020-011

Brooke Pinto, candidate for Ward 2 Council seat in Washington, D.C., may be in violation of District of Columbia campaign finance law. Brooke Pinto served as her campaign’s own treasurer so she has full knowledge of all financial dealings regarding her campaign.

 

I, Lauren Wolfe, strongly urge you to take a look again at the evidence previously submitted as it seems some of the evidence submitted may have been overlooked. I also encourage you to think about how if the inside of a campaign house was originally intended to be used, but due to a pandemic is moved outside at the same location, there is still a campaign headquarters at that location.

 

 

Issue One – Deletion of Social Media Showing Campaign Activity in front of 1300 Q Street NW

 

If Brooke Pinto is so confident that the house was never used as a campaign headquarters, why did she make serious efforts to delete evidence of campaign activity not just from in front of the house from her campaign social media accounts but also from volunteers’ social media accounts?

 

In my amended OCF investigation request submitted August 6, 2020, I provided a screenshot of the Brooke Pinto Campaign Instagram Account that showed Brooke Pinto lawn signs, a “Brooke4Ward2'' balloon arch, a Brooke Pinto pink tent and banner listing her endorsements and a volunteer wearing a Brooke Pinto shirt at the 1300 Q St NW property. Her caption notes that the “6-ft-tall sign of me” on the 1300 Q St NW property should “do the trick” in reminding people to vote.

 

This image was posted to Instagram on June 1, 2020 on the BrookePintoforWard2 Instagram page. The image was also displayed by Brooke Pinto’s campaign on Twitter and it was also shared by Brooke’s sister, Caren Pinto, on her Twitter account. After I submitted my request to OCF for an investigation, the image was deleted from Brooke Pinto’s campaign Instagram account, Brooke Pinto’s Twitter and Caren Pinto’s Twitter.

 

The deletion of the social media pictures depicting campaign activity in front of 1300 Q Street NW was never addressed by Office of Campaign Finance’s Motion in the Matter of Brooke Pinto Docket No: OCF:INV 2020-011

 

This is the photo in question. The photo was taken of the yard and sidewalk in front of 1300 Q Street NW.

 

 

Issue Two – Sign Placement at 1300 Q Street NW

 

According to OCF, Brooke Pinto stated in “her declaration her mother returned to the rental property at 1300 Q Street, NW on May 27, 2020 and her family posted signs in front of the property.”  

 

Photos from May 1, 2020 show that signs surrounded the property and were placed inside the home showing that apparently someone was there before May 27, 2020 placing signs in and around 1300 Q Street NW.

 

It seems that OCF is taking Brooke Pinto for her word without looking for further documentation that the property seemed to have signage well before May 27, 2020.

 

The following photos from May 1, 2020 show signs inside the windows and outside on the lawn of 1300 Q Street NW.

 

 

 

 

 

Issue Three – Taking The Candidate for Her Word

 

In numerous statements in Office of Campaign Finance’s Motion in the Matter of Brooke Pinto Docket No: OCF:INV 2020-011, Brooke Pinto says that her parents did not have any interest in the house. This is definitely very possible but due to the structure of the way the house was set up, there does not seem to be any way of knowing who are the investors in this house.

 

The only person listed is Karan Keith Agarwal who appears to be 25 years old. He graduated from the University of Southern California in 2017. How he was able to buy a house for 975,000 cash when he is so young is obviously something to look into though clearly it is possible he purchased this house with his own money or with the money of investors. As a resident of the District, I am certainly concerned if 25-year-olds who have 975,000 cash for a house are casually letting their friends use the property for their political campaigns without reporting it at the detriment to everyone else who does not have friends with 975,000 dollar houses to assemble a campaign.

 

 

Issue Four - Who Was in the House and When?

 

District residents should know when campaigns are receiving a donation by a developer to use a building as a campaign headquarters but the question that it was even used as anything else here is highly suspect. OCF should look at other District agencies, such as DCRA, to see if such a use was even permitted.

 

The question in my original OCF investigation request was to look into whether 1300 Q Street NW was ever used as a campaign headquarters, not whether Brooke Pinto’s parents lived there or not. It seems odd that Pinto would imply that if her parents lived there, that is supposed to mean there was no campaign headquarters. It should be noted that originally Brooke Pinto stated both of her parents, her mother and father, were staying there but later changed to state that just her mother was involved in living at the house.

 

The Washington City Paper reported on June 11, 2020 that “while Pinto lives on Q Street NW near Logan Circle, and put that address on her campaign lawn signs, her parents started renting a house down the street shortly after Pinto announced her bid.” The article continues “She tells City Paper she was ‘intending to initiate a sub-lease,’ but changed her plans when the pandemic worsened and her campaign went remote. Her mother returned to D.C. last week to stay in the house she’s still renting … Pinto tells City Paper that … her parents ‘of course put yard signs up’ because they stay when they visit. Dale and James Pinto did not respond to requests for comment.”[1]

 

Brooke Pinto told The Washington City Paper that her mother, Dale Pinto, was in Connecticut but to OCF she said that her mother was in Florida.

 

Washington City Paper reported on June 11, 2020 that “On a good day, Pinto says she made 500 calls to Ward 2 voters. That’s in addition to the calls a small army of about 70 volunteers made – among them, her mother, Dale Pinto, who phoned D.C. voters from her home in Connecticut.”

 

According to the OCF Office of the General Counsel, Brooke Pinto later stated “that her mother signed a short-term lease on the property on March 2, 2020 and intended to move in during the week of March 9, 2020 but instead travelled to Florida to shelter in place with her father due to COVID-19 and only spent one night at the location on May 23, 2020.”

 

The claim that anyone with multiple multi-million dollar houses would be living, even for one night, in a house that was awaiting permits to be gutted for redevelopment is likely to leave one skeptical. Brooke Pinto’s father, James Pinto, has a long history in finance having served as a Director/Board Member with many companies. According to FactSet, he served on the boards of Moscow CableCom Corp, Miami Leasing, Westin Inc., Ohio Medical, Bristol Hotels & Resorts and ClaimTrust. Moscow CableCom Corp is, according to a press release from Covington, now part of the Renova Media Enterprises Ltd., which is the telecommunications arm of the Renova Group, a leading Russian private equity investor.[2]

 

DCRA stated that 1300 Q Street NW was never approved as a rental, the house does not show that it was ever furnished according to real estate documentation, so it is unclear how this house was ever supposed to have been used even as a rental home. The family seems to have money for substantially nicer accommodation than an unfurnished house awaiting permits for interior demolition.

 

It is unclear why the claim that her mother/parents intended to rent in the house to live in is being used to dispute the possibility that the campaign used the house as a campaign headquarters. Perhaps her mother did rent the house for one night, but that does not negate the campaign activity clearly centered around this house. The issue is whether this house was used for campaign activity, regardless of who did or did not live here, and due to clear photographic evidence the outside of the house was used as a center for campaign activity as it was previously designated as a campaign headquarters.

 

Photos of the 1300 Q Street NW listing from HomeSnap. These and more photos are currently available of the property on their application.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Issue Five – What is a Campaign Headquarters in the age of COVID-19?

 

It seems that OCF is taking a very conservative approach to what is a campaign headquarters without looking at how one would assemble and run a campaign when everything has to be done outside.  If the Brooke Pinto campaign originally intended to use the inside as a campaign headquarters but then transferred campaign activity outside at the same address shouldn’t it still be considered a campaign headquarters?

 

Can a building originally intended as a campaign headquarters that is surrounded in campaign signs, with giant balloon arch, a huge campaign pink tent, a large campaign banner and assembled volunteers to regularly be at the house outside, with campaign photos taken at the site and shared on social media, not be considered a campaign headquarters? Would OCF honestly say that is not a campaign headquarters in the age of COVID simply because all of the activity was outside on the lawn instead of inside the house as originally intended?

 

It is important that people in the District know the influence behind their politics. If Brooke Pinto set up a campaign headquarters on the lawn of 1300 Q Street NW for an extended period of time with the help of a developer of the property, shouldn’t that be noted as a contribution by the campaign?

 

Not every candidate for Council is friends with 25-year-olds who can purchase a $975,000 house in cash and let their friends use the home’s yard as they please, but if they are it should be reported as a contribution.

 

 

Conclusion

 

A $975,000 house, and the yard around the house, may have been used as a campaign headquarters that was not reported by the Brooke Pinto campaign. I ask that you uphold the integrity of our election process by thoroughly investigating the claims laid out above and assign penalties if you deem them appropriate.

 

 

Sincerely,

 

Lauren Wolfe

2833 Alabama Ave SE #30736

Washington, D.C. 20020

D.C. Bar # 1048660

[1] Rachel Cohen and Mitch Ryals, How Did Brooke Pinto Win the Ward 2 Primary? Washington City Paper, June 11, 2020, https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/304316/how-did-brooke-pinto-win-the-ward-2-council-primary/

[2] Covington Advises Moscow CableCom Special Committee in Merger with Renova Media. July 19, 2007. https://www.cov.com/en/news-and-insights/news/2007/07/covington-advises-moscow-cablecom-special-committee-in-merger-with-renova-media