Virginia State Senator Louise Lucas Indicted In Alleged $4.5 Million Racketeering And Drug Scheme

October 23, 2026

Federal prosecutors have indicted longtime Virginia State Senator Lillie Louise Lucas and six others in an eight-count indictment involving racketeering, marijuana distribution, money laundering, bribery, and weapons offenses.

The indictment accuses Lucas, 82, of Portsmouth, of leading what investigators call the “Lucas Enterprise,” an operation involving family members and business associates that generated roughly $4.5 million over five years. Federal authorities allege the group trafficked 100 kilograms or more of marijuana, laundered the proceeds, and used political influence to shield operations from law enforcement.

“Louise Lucas has served in a position of public trust in the Commonwealth of Virginia for over three decades,” Attorney General Todd Blanche said. “The charges alleged in this indictment reveal the behavior of a public servant who put her own financial interests before the people she was elected to serve. Our federal prosecutors will continue to be guided by the facts and evidence that led a grand jury to indict Ms. Lucas and her alleged co-conspirators.”

Lucas has served in the Virginia Senate since 1991, holds the post of president pro tempore, and chairs the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee, which oversees the state budget, tax policy, and appropriations. Prosecutors allege she used those committee and legislative posts to advance bills favoring her ventures and insulate her businesses from legal consequences.

“Today’s indictment reveals Louise Lucas allegedly abused her position of public trust as a 30-year Virginia State Senator to put her own financial interests ahead of the people she represents — orchestrating a five-year scheme worth an estimated $4.5 million,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “The charges allege Lucas and a close-knit group of family members and associates used Lucas’ position as Chairwoman of the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee to protect their criminal marijuana enterprise — the ‘Lucas Enterprise’ — insulating the business from criminal scrutiny and influencing legislation to financially benefit themselves.”

Handcuff (File)

According to court filings, the enterprise included Lucas’ daughters, Lisa Lucas-Burke and Theresa Lucas-Lamb, her grandson, Ryan Eichelberger, and business partner Carlton Upton Jr., 54, of Chesapeake.

Beginning in 2019, Lucas and Upton partnered in VA Freedom Life, an entity operating The CBD Shoppe and later The Cannabis Outlet. Upton, who ran The CBD Shoppe, is accused of submitting fraudulent statements on an April 2020 Economic Injury Disaster Loan application that secured $11,800. In 2021, Lucas and Lucas-Burke opened The Cannabis Outlet in Portsmouth, where Lucas-Lamb and Eichelberger allegedly managed daily operations and handled marijuana procurement and distribution.

Court documents also allege that in August 2022, Lucas paid $750,000 for full ownership of a shell company holding an associate’s expected recreational cannabis license, an interest she omitted from mandatory state disclosure forms. Prosecutors state Lucas later met the associate inside her Capitol complex office to collect a partial cash payment and lobbied state officials on the partner’s licensing status based on bribery arrangements.

“This indictment alleges that a sitting Virginia State Senator led a criminal organization that exploited access and influence to facilitate drug trafficking and other offenses,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Theophani K. Stamos for the Eastern District of Virginia. “Public office is a position of trust and should never be abused for personal gain. I am grateful to the agents and prosecutors whose dedication and tireless work throughout this years-long investigation has culminated in this indictment.”

Federal agents searched both The Cannabis Outlet and The CBD Shoppe on May 6, seizing quantities of marijuana and multiple firearms.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Eric M. Hurt and Brian J. Samuels of the Eastern District of Virginia are leading the prosecution.