US Rep. Eli Crane (R-Flagstaff), has centered his political campaigns on stopping the flow of drugs—but new Federal Election Commission (FEC) data shows he’s spent thousands paying a political consultant arrested by police after they discovered an active meth lab in her home.
In 2016, Emily Pitha and her then-boyfriend, Christopher Hustrulid, were arrested after authorities discovered methamphetamine, LSD, heroin, cocaine and a large amount of cash inside their Phoenix home, according to Scripps News. The couple also appeared to have a meth lab in their backyard.
Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office deputies searched her house after a package intended for her live-in boyfriend was intercepted by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and found to contain 250 grams of MDMA, or ecstasy.
Pitha later pleaded guilty to one count of possession of drug paraphernalia and was sentenced to two years probation.
Before her arrest, Pitha worked with other top Republicans at a political fundraising firm, serving clients such as former Sens. John McCain, Jeff Flake, and Jon Kyl. When news first broke in 2016, McCain’s team quickly cut ties with her. According to reporting by the Daily Beast, Pitha’s boyfriend thought their political ties could help them avoid prosecution.
That history didn’t seem to matter to Crane, however, who worked with Pitha from 2022 to 2024, first reported by the Arizona Mirror in 2024. While the congressman did not respond to its requests for comment, he later posted in support of Pitha on X.
“Emily was put through hell when she was in a toxic relationship many years ago. I’m proud to run a campaign that employs hard working Arizonans who have dealt with adversity,” Crane said in a post on X.
“If the dark money machine in DC wants to attack that, it says more about them than anyone on Team Crane.”
The reporting didn’t stop him: Between 2025 and 2026 alone, Crane spent more than $55,000 on Pitha’s fundraising consulting services, according to FEC data.
How it complicates his messaging
A far-right Republican, Crane has run on a platform of pro-mass deportation, anti-drugs, and ardently pro-President Donald Trump.
That platform extends to fentanyl, which Crane has framed as a direct consequence of border crossings rather than as a separate issue.
Crane has repeatedly voted in favor of Trump’s mass deportation agenda, including funneling billions into Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to expand the detention network. In 2025, Crane joined Republicans in voting for H.R. 2056, legislation that bars Washington, DC from limiting cooperation with federal immigration officials. Beyond just support for ICE, Crane has also stood behind efforts to curb legal immigration, including sponsoring H.R. 8443, which sought to limit immigration for H-1B visas.
At the same time, more than 65,000 people are now sitting in ICE facilities, according to TRAC immigration, a research organization part of Syracuse university, including Arizona business owners, grandmothers, and fathers, due to Trump’s policies, at a time when the majority of the country disapproves of ICE’s actions.
The congressman has also consistently spoken out against illicit drugs smuggled through the US border, attributing the issue to immigrants at the border, but data shows that 78% smuggling is done by US citizens rather than immigrants, according to the American Immigration Council.
In 2023, Crane penned an op-ed on the dangers of cartels and “powerful drug empires,” attributing blame to the Biden administration’s policies. That rhetoric, used by Trump and other Republicans, helps dehumanize immigrant communities, advocates say.
Crane did not respond to a request for comment sent Sept. 14 by the time of publication.
The congressman represents Arizona’s largest district, the 2nd Congressional District, and will face Navajo Nation President Jonathan Nez, a Democrat, this fall. The district leans heavily red, but national Democrats have put their support behind the race in hopes of flipping it in November.
