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Law enforcement at the home of a MAGA farmer, business

Law enforcement at the home of a MAGA farmer, business

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Federal and state law enforcement vehicles surrounded famed North Naples farmer/grocer Alfie Oakes’ home and Immokalee business on Thursday.

Part grocery store, part bakery, part butcher shop, part bar, Oakes’ $30 million-plus Seed to Table is the popular meeting place for the GOP’s local Make America Great Again wing, as well as area foodies who are drawn to organic broccoli and craft beer.

Reached by phone, Oakes declined to comment other than to say, “We’re looking into it, but everything is fine.”

A man standing in the driveway in front of a metal Oakes building in Immokalee Thursday afternoon was wearing a DCIS (Defense Criminal Investigative Service) badge, indicating he is a member of the Department of Defense that investigates terrorism, cybercrime and fraud. Vehicles from Oakes Farms were seen Thursday, although some were turned away. The man’s shirt says ‘firearms instructor’.

According to WINK News, many Florida Highway Patrol vehicles were at both the home and business earlier in the day, but FHP directed questions to the U.S. Secret Service.

John Meo, chairman of the Collier County Republican Executive Committee, fears this is a weaponization of federal law enforcement.

“We know they showed up and took some equipment,” he said. “It’s kind of funny that they’re doing it now. I think they want to get information on January 6.”

In 2021, Oakes hosted two busloads of Trump supporters who went to Washington DC on January 6, 2021 for what Oakes called “the most peaceful, beautiful demonstration of over 1 million people that I have ever witnessed.”

Oakes previously served as a county GOP board member until he found himself in a high-profile battle with Collier Supervisor of Elections Melissa Blazier over a late filing and was not allowed on the primary ballot.

Feds mother: ‘Ongoing investigation’

The Secret Service declined to comment.

“The United States Secret Service will not confirm the existence or status of an investigation,” the agency said via email.

However, Department of Defense spokesperson Inspector General Mollie Halpern confirmed Thursday afternoon that DCIS agents are actively conducting law enforcement activities in Naples.

“I cannot provide any additional information at this time as it is an open investigation,” she said.

DCIS is the law enforcement arm of the DOD. DCIS special agents are deployed worldwide to conduct investigations that have a significant impact on DOD operations, ranging from cybercrime to bribery, fraud, terrorism, public corruption and procurement fraud, Halpern said. “We play an integral role in protecting America’s warfighters.”

(This story has been updated to add new information, including a photo gallery.)