Ontario residents demand transparency after mayor pro tem's house raided by FBI agents
Ontario residents gathered at Tuesday night's city council meeting to demand transparency from city leaders after the city's mayor pro tempore's home was raided by FBI agents last month.
The heated meeting saw much discussion surrounding the search warrant that was executed at Alan Wapner's home in late July. His property was one of several belonging to Southern Californian politicians, including San Bernardino County Supervisor Curt Hagman and some homes in Beverly Hills, as part of a large-scale investigation. Exact details on what they are probing remain unclear.
"I have never been named the suspect, the subject, the target of any investigation," Wapner said during the meeting. "They did search the house; we don't know what they are searching for."
Along with the warrants that were conducted in July, FBI agents also served a subpoena at the Ontario International Airport, where both Wapner and Hagman serve on the Ontario International Airport Authority as president and vice president, respectively.
"They were looking for some records. I don't know what records they are, but I know that my name wasn't included in any of those subpoenas," Wapner said.
Despite his statements, residents demanded accountability and transparency from their city leaders.
"You need to go, straight up. You need to go," one woman said.
Their outrage comes after the city's Mayor, Paul Leon, called on Wapner to resign from his role on the airport's board and other city positions last week.
Some residents also voiced their support for Wapner, especially since no information has come from the FBI following the search warrants.
"A search is not an accusation. It is not a finding of wrongdoing," said one resident. "To my knowledge, no accusation of Mr. Wapner has been made."
Wapner has served on Ontario's City Council for more than 30 years and is currently running for mayor. The council will vote at their next scheduled meeting in two weeks on whether Wapner should step down from his positions. He said that he would retain his position as a city councilman regardless of the decision.
Wapner declined to speak with CBS LA on Tuesday night after the meeting.
