Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez reversed course Tuesday, announcing that the state will investigate a 2022 case in which an unnamed state legislator accepted $35,000 in a paper bag from a bribery subject. Governor Josh Green and Lopez jointly determined that a state investigation is warranted in the public interest. The reversal follows weeks of mounting public pressure, including a citizen petition signed by more than 1,000 people and calls from lawmakers for disclosure of the legislator’s identity.
The case has sat unresolved for four years with questions about whether the $35,000 was a bribe, an unreported gift, or a legal campaign contribution. The state’s statute of limitations for bribery charges expires in 2028.
What Happened in 2022
The $35,000 transaction occurred in 2022 and was recorded by Ty Cullen, a former state representative who became a federal informant. Cullen had been arrested in 2021 on bribery charges. To help the federal investigation and reduce his eventual sentence, Cullen accepted $3,000 from an unnamed bribery subject, then two days later recorded that person handing $35,000 to a state legislator described in court filings as “influential.”
The legislator’s identity has remained hidden from the public. It is unclear whether that person still holds elected office.
Questions About Legal Status
The payment’s legal categorization remains contested. It could constitute a bribe, an unreported gift, an illegal campaign contribution violating state reporting and contribution-limit rules, or legal campaign-cash bundling — a practice typically used to curry favor with politicians. The ambiguity has fueled public speculation about what actually occurred.
From Hesitation to Investigation
As recently as January 7, Lopez said she would not investigate the case. She stated she had spoken directly with acting U.S. Attorney Ken Sorenson, and he “affirmed that a parallel investigation by state authorities would interfere with their federal investigation.”
“The United States Attorney is a highly respected prosecutor who has served in Hawaiʻi for years, and there was no ambiguity in our conversation that a parallel state investigation would disrupt his ongoing investigation,” Lopez said in that statement.
That position reversed after federal authorities informed state officials on Friday that they would share evidence of the transaction, paving the way for the state to proceed without jeopardizing the federal case.
The push for investigation intensified after Honolulu Civil Beat revealed the $35,000 transaction last year. A citizen petition led by government accountability advocate and attorney Alexander Silvert pressed the Legislature to demand state action. The petition gained more than 1,000 signatures.
At a press conference Tuesday in front of the federal court building, Silvert called on Governor Green to direct the attorney general to reveal the legislator’s identity to the Legislature. He noted that even if the conduct proves legal, the Legislature should be able to address within their own chamber what to do with this person.
Representative Della Au Belatti, a Democrat running for Congress, pressed the same point: “This is not an investigation that needs to be bottled up,” she said. “Is it a current legislator? Is it someone who’s sitting in the executive branch?”
Belatti and Republican Representative Kanani Souza have urged the attorney general to investigate since last year. In a July 2025 letter, they called for the facts to be made public, noting that understanding whether laws were broken is crucial and that if they were not, lawmakers need to understand what new legislation is needed to curtail practices eroding public trust in government.
If the $35,000 was dispersed among multiple lawmakers, Belatti said those officials should return the funds. “So they can make it right,” she said.
Investigation Timeline and Statute of Limitations
The attorney general’s special investigation and prosecution division, created in 2022 in the aftermath of an earlier state bribery scandal, will lead the investigation. The office said it will not comment further to preserve the investigation’s integrity.
Lawmakers continue pressing for action beyond the attorney general’s investigation. A group of five House members, including Representatives Terez Amato, Elle Cochran, and Kim Coco Iwamoto, asked House Speaker Nadine Nakamura for details on how Silvert’s petition will be handled. The same group sent a letter to U.S. Attorney Sorenson asking directly: Is the legislator a current sitting legislator — yes or no. Sorenson has not answered, Belatti said.
Representative Jarrett Keohokalole, also running for Congress, has introduced legislation to extend the state’s statute of limitations for bribery charges from six years to nine years. The current deadline expires in 2028. The extension would push it to 2031. Belatti emphasized Tuesday that if the unnamed legislator is still in office, they should be isolated from voting on any statute-of-limitations changes that could affect their own case.
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