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Please make sure your browser supports JavaScript and cookies and that you are not blocking them from loading. For more information you can review our Terms of Service and Cookie Policy.</s>(ANNAPOLIS, Md.) — The FBI has raided the office of a Republican consulting firm in Maryland in connection with an investigation into the 2013 Virginia governor's race.

The FBI confirmed Thursday it served a search warrant in Annapolis, Maryland, but declined to elaborate. Kelley Rogers, president of Strategic Campaign Group, told reporters the investigation relates to work the consultant did for former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, the GOP's 2013 gubernatorial candidate.

Rogers told reporters that his firm settled a lawsuit brought by the Cuccinelli campaign after he lost the governor's race to Terry McAuliffe. Roger says the investigation appears to have stemmed from allegations in that lawsuit.

Cuccinelli told The Associated Press he has not been interviewed by law enforcement officials. He says he's curious to see where the investigation leads.</s>ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) — FBI agents raided the office of a Republican consulting firm in Maryland on Thursday in connection with an investigation into the 2013 Virginia governor’s race.

The FBI confirmed it served a search warrant in Annapolis, Maryland, but declined to elaborate. Kelley Rogers, president of Strategic Campaign Group, told reporters the investigation relates to work the consultant did for former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, the GOP’s 2013 gubernatorial candidate.

Rogers told reporters that his firm settled a lawsuit brought by the Cuccinelli campaign after he lost the governor’s race to Democrat Terry McAuliffe. Roger said the investigation appears to have stemmed from allegations in that lawsuit.

The firm’s website describes Strategic Campaign Group as “a full-service Republican political consulting firm able to design, manage, and execute every aspect of political and fundraising campaigns for Republican politicians, conservative political action committees, and conservative organizations of all kinds.”

The windows in the firm’s doors leading into its third floor suite in a building on Main Street in Maryland’s capital were obscured as FBI agents served the search warrant. Rogers did not immediately return a phone call or email from The Associated Press seeking comment.

Cuccinelli sued Strategic Campaign Group in 2014, alleging that the company and a political action committee duped donors. Cuccinelli said the Conservative StrikeForce PAC raised $2.2 million in 2013, largely by promising donors the money would help Cuccinelli in his ultimately unsuccessful Virginia campaign against McAuliffe. The PAC only gave $10,000 to Cuccinelli’s campaign, which was heavily outspent by McAuliffe.

Cuccinelli’s lawsuit described the StrikeForce PAC as being “controlled by” Strategic Campaign Group. The company and the PAC settled with Cuccinelli in 2015, agreeing to pay his gubernatorial campaign $85,000.

Several political campaigns in recent years have complained of so-called “scam PACs” that purportedly raise money to help a political campaign, but instead enrich consultants and others with the bulk of the funds. Such groups have become more prevalent in recent years after a series of court rulings, including the U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United decisions, reshaped the campaign finance landscape and boosted the prominence of groups not directly associated with a candidate.

Cuccinelli said Wednesday in a statement to The Associated Press that he’d not spoken to any federal law enforcement officials about Strategic Campaign Group but is “curious” to see where the case goes.

“It was my hope when we brought our lawsuit to cast light on the dark practices of scam PACs.á I think we did that successfully,” Cuccinelli said. “Any cleaning up of these practices would be good for our political system.

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>BALTIMORE (WJZ) — The FBI quietly raided a Republican consulting and fundraising firm in Annapolis Thursday.

The FBI says this is part of a Washington D.C. field office investigation.

Agents have turned off elevator access to the third floor of 191 Main Street, where Strategic Campaign Group is housed, and used trash bags to cover the office windows while they gather evidence.

They came prepared with a warrant to search the office and take files.

WJZ cameras watched them come out of the building with full garbage bags.

The president of the firm tells our media partners at The Baltimore Sun that the federal investigation ties back to a 2013 Virginia gubernatorial campaign.

The company’s work on the campaign of Republican Ken Cuccinelli led to a lawsuit after he lost the election to Terry McAuliffe.

All the feds will say is that this is an active and ongoing investigation.

The Maryland Republican Party confirms it’s looking into the raid.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

Follow @CBSBaltimore on Twitter and like WJZ-TV | CBS Baltimore on Facebook</s>ANNAPOLIS, Md. (CBS4) – The FBI is conducting an investigation at a Republican campaign consulting and fundraising firm.

CBS Baltimore reports that agents are currently at the Strategic Campaign Group.

The FBI says that this is part of a Washington, D.C. field office investigation, but would not release further details.</s>On Thursday, social media reports began to circulate about an FBI raid taking place in Annapolis, Maryland. Jayne Miller of WBAL-TV first began to tweet about the execution of a search warrant on a GOP fundraising office, and what followed was plenty of speculation. However, the Baltimore Sun was able to gain basic confirmation of the raid’s existence from both the office being investigated (Strategic Campaign Group) and the bureau itself:

FBI spokeswoman Lindsay Ram said the investigation is being conducted through the bureau’s Washington field office, which has jurisdiction in Washington, D.C. and Northern Virginia. She said agents from the office sometimes cross over into other jurisdictions when the entity they are investigating has offices in multiple locations.

Agents who executed the warrant seized files from the office, which is both a consulting and fundraising organization for some Republican candidates. There’s currently no indication that this raid has anything to do with the FBI’s Russia probe, unlike what Twitter seems to believe.

The Capital Gazette is reporting — at least according to the firm’s president, Kelley Rogers — that this raid is tied to the 2013 Virginia gubernatorial race. At the time, Strategic Campaign Group did work for former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, who lost to Democrat Terry McAuliffe and sued the firm. Rogers says related allegations may have prompted this raid:

The Cuccinelli suit alleged that Strategic Campaign Group and the associated Conservative Strike Force Political Action Committee — an independent group not affiliated with the candidate — raised about $2.2 million by assuring donors it would spend the money to help elect the GOP candidate. The suit alleged that the PAC and Strategic Campaign Group failed to follow through on promises for an extensive media campaign on Cuccinelli’s behalf.

In 2014, the Washington Post uncovered the firm’s defendant status in the suit filed by Cuccinelli. The publication details how Strategic Campaign Group made calls on behalf of and controlled the Conservative Strike Force PAC, which Cuccinelli accused of pulling wool over his followers’ eyes via a “malicious ‘Scam PAC’ operation.”

Social media photos are currently circulating that show Strategic Campaign Group’s front windows covered in black plastic by the FBI.</s>The FBI confirms agents are executing a search warrant at an office of a GOP fundraiser and consulting firm in Annapolis, the 11 News I-Team has learned., the I-Team has learned.The FBI used trash bags to cover a window at the third-floor offices of Strategic Campaign Group at 191 Main St.The firm is touted for pioneering the use of technology in political campaigns, and it represents GOP candidates nationwide.None of the building tenants, which include Annapolis lobbyists, said they know what the search is about. In addition, the office building neighbors also said they don't know why the FBI is interested in the office.The firm has been sued, and has been questioned by the Federal Election Commission concerning money raised by a political action committee linked to the firm that has been accused of using candidates' names to raise money without their permission.The I-Team's calls to the executives for the firm have not yet been returned.</s>The FBI raided a Republican campaign consultant's Annapolis office Thursday, causing Maryland Republican lawmakers to say they will stop doing business with the firm.

Kelley Rogers, president of Strategic Campaign Group, said a half-dozen FBI agents arrived at his Main Street office about 8:30 a.m. with a warrant to search and seize records. The FBI confirmed it conducted a raid in Annapolis but would not say where. An individual carrying a backpack marked FBI was seen leaving the firm's office.

Rogers, whose firm has previously worked with campaign committees for Maryland House of Delegates and Senate candidates, said the FBI investigation concerns work the firm performed during the 2013 Virginia gubernatorial campaign of former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, a Republican. Rogers insisted the investigation did not involve Maryland politics and that the firm had done nothing wrong.

He said that if any clients want to be released from their contracts, he will free them.

Maryland Republicans quickly took him up on that offer. Senate Minority Leader J.B. Jennings, of Baltimore County, and House Minority Leader Nic Kipke, of Anne Arundel County, confirmed that campaign committees for GOP senators and delegates had hired the firm to raise money and do other work before the 2017 session. Both said their committees would not use the firm again until its legal issues were resolved.

"I'm shocked by what has come to light today and we will not be working with them on any new projects until the legal process is completed and they are cleared," Kipke said just hours after the raid.

Jennings said the company did satisfactory work last year but added that GOP senators haven't been in touch with the firm since the session ended last month.

"I think should we hire a company, we would look elsewhere," he said.

According to Rogers, his firm settled a civil suit brought by the Cuccinelli campaign after he lost the 2013 Virginia governor's race to Democrat Terry McAuliffe. Rogers said the investigation appears to stem from allegations brought in that suit.

The Cuccinelli suit alleged that Strategic Campaign Group and the associated Conservative Strike Force Political Action Committee — an independent group not affiliated with the candidate — raised about $2.2 million by assuring donors it would spend the money to help elect the GOP candidate. The suit alleged that the PAC and Strategic Campaign Group failed to follow through on promises of an extensive media campaign on Cuccinelli's behalf.

Rogers said his firm settled the dispute for what he recalls as $75,000. Press accounts put the amount at $85,000. Rogers insisted Thursday that the Cuccinelli campaign claims have no merit.

The GOP strategist and firm vice president Chip O'Neil spoke to reporters while FBI agents were still working in the office Thursday. Both spoke without lawyers present.

Rogers praised the professionalism of the agents and predicted the investigation would clear his name and that of the firm.

"The truth shall set you free," he said.

Rogers said agents arrived without notice and presented a search warrant. He said they took records and downloaded other information from the firm's computers.

FBI spokeswoman Lindsay Ram said the investigation is being conducted through the bureau's Washington field office, which has jurisdiction in the District of Columbia and Northern Virginia. She said agents from the office sometimes cross over into other jurisdictions when the entity they are investigating has offices in multiple locations. She declined to provide more details.</s>FBI agents executed a search warrant at a GOP consulting firm in Annapolis, Maryland, Thursday afternoon, setting off alarms for liberals and conservatives online who were convinced it was related to the Russia investigation.

The firms is called Strategic Campaign Group and it bills itself as a Republican campaign–winning operation that has “helped Republican candidates run for office at every level.” The Washington Post spoke to the firm’s president, Kelley Rogers, and he said agents collected documents related to its direct-mail and fundraising operations.

The lack of information in initial reports, combined with the FBI’s involvement, had the rumor mill churning on Twitter.

On the left, a connection was quickly “confirmed” between Strategic Campaign Group and former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort.

On the right, it was initially seen as a sign of a “coup.”

Cernovich walked back the claim after reading the Post article linked above. It outlines Strategic Campaign Group’s fraught legal past. In 2014, the firm was sued by former Virginia attorney general Ken Cuccinelli. He said it ran a PAC that raised over $2 million dollars for his gubernatorial campaign but spent little of that money in support of him. The firm settled the civil suit for $85,000.

Indeed, Rogers, the firm’s president, confirmed in an interview with Capital Gazette that the FBI raid was related to the Cuccinelli allegations, not the tenuous-at-best links to Manafort. While the FBI confirmed it conducted a raid in Annapolis, it would not say where or the reasons why.</s>FBI agents raided the office of a Republican consulting firm in Maryland on Thursday, in connection with an investigation into the 2013 Virginia governor's race.

The FBI confirmed it served a search warrant in Annapolis, but declined to elaborate.

Kelley Rogers, president of Strategic Campaign Group, told reporters the investigation relates to work the consultant did for former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, the GOP's 2013 gubernatorial candidate.

Rogers told reporters that his firm settled a lawsuit brought by the Cuccinelli campaign after he lost the governor's race to Democrat Terry McAuliffe.

The firm's website describes Strategic Campaign Group as 'a full-service Republican political consulting firm able to design, manage, and execute every aspect of political and fundraising campaigns for Republican politicians, conservative political action committees, and conservative organizations of all kinds.'

The windows in the firm's doors leading into its third floor suite in a building on Main Street in Maryland's capital were obscured as FBI agents served the search warrant.

Rogers did not immediately return a phone call or email seeking comment.

Cuccinelli sued Strategic Campaign Group in 2014, alleging that the company and a political action committee duped donors.

Cuccinelli said the Conservative StrikeForce PAC raised $2.2 million in 2013, largely by promising donors the money would help Cuccinelli in his ultimately unsuccessful Virginia campaign against McAuliffe.

The PAC only gave $10,000 to Cuccinelli's campaign, which was heavily outspent by McAuliffe.

Cuccinelli's lawsuit described the StrikeForce PAC as being 'controlled by' Strategic Campaign Group. The company and the PAC settled with Cuccinelli in 2015, agreeing to pay his gubernatorial campaign $85,000.

The firm also did campaign work for Maryland Republican lawmakers.

Republican state legislative leaders said they wouldn't do further work with the firm unless it is cleared in the investigation.

'I'm shocked by it,' said Delegate Nic Kipke, the minority leader in the Maryland House of Delegates.

'All of the work they've done for me has been competent and of the highest ethical standards, and I have no reason to believe that they would do anything unethical.'

Senator JB Jennings, the Maryland Senate minority leader, said the firm had done work for the Senate Republican caucus.

'This came as an absolute shock to us, but we have not renegotiated a contract this year because no one has really gotten around to it, and so with this, we're just going to separate our relationship for now,' Jennings said.

Several political campaigns in recent years have complained of so-called 'scam PACs' that purportedly raise money to help a political campaign, but instead enrich consultants and others with the bulk of the funds.

Such groups have become more prevalent in recent years after a series of court rulings, including the US Supreme Court's Citizens United decisions, reshaped the campaign finance landscape and boosted the prominence of groups not directly associated with a candidate.

Cuccinelli said Wednesday in a statement to that he'd not spoken to any federal law enforcement officials about Strategic Campaign Group but is 'curious' to see where the case goes.

'It was my hope when we brought our lawsuit to cast light on the dark practices of scam PACs. I think we did that successfully,' Cuccinelli said.

'Any cleaning up of these practices would be good for our political system.

Rogers was a senior consultant to one-time White House party crasher and former reality television figure Tareq Salahi's run for Virginia governor in 2013, according to a campaign news release.

Rogers said on his company's website that he's worked for numerous Republican politicians at every level.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation raids a Republican fundraising firm in Annapolis, Maryland.