SPONSORED GUEST COLUMN
By Reid Rasner, CEO, Omnivest Financial
As a 4th generation Wyomingite, Wyoming is my home. It is where I was born, where I was raised, and where my values were formed. Growing up here taught me that you stand up for your neighbors, you work hard for what you earn, and you do not let government overreach crush the people who keep our communities alive.
That is why I am speaking out for a man who has been treated unfairly and who needs our help. His name is Troy Lake. He is a 65-year-old small business owner from Cheyenne. He has spent his life keeping trucks, farm equipment, fire trucks, and school buses running. In Wyoming, that is not just a job. It is a service that keeps our economy moving and our families safe.
Troy owns Elite Diesel Service. If you drive a truck across the state, haul grain from a farm, or rely on a school bus to get your kids to school, there is a good chance you have benefited from work like his. He has been the kind of neighbor we all value, the one who says “bring it in, I will get you back on the road.”
The Biden-era EPA Region 8, working with the FBI, Weld County Sheriff, and Windsor Police, raided Troy’s shop in Colorado. They came with agents in tactical gear carrying automatic weapons. They shut down a city block. This was not the picture of a fair investigation. It was an act designed to intimidate a small business owner whose only real crime was helping people who were struggling with faulty EPA-mandated emissions systems.
Those systems were causing critical vehicles to break down. Fire departments, farmers, and truckers could not afford to have their equipment sitting idle for weeks while waiting for repairs from manufacturers. Troy fixed them so his community could keep moving. Instead of recognizing that, the government made him a target.
Other shops around the country that did similar work received warning letters. Troy was singled out. He was charged with conspiracy under the Clean Air Act and sentenced to a year and a day in prison. The judge who sentenced him, Regina M. Rodriguez, was appointed by President Biden and had previously represented Cummins, one of the largest manufacturers of the engines in question. She did not disclose that connection until the sentencing hearing. She also said she wanted to “make an example” of Troy.
That is not justice. That is politics invading the courtroom.
Recently, I spoke with Troy’s wife, Holly. She gave me an emotional plea for help. Her voice shook as she described how this ordeal has upended their lives. She told me about the strain on their family, the financial devastation, and the heartbreak of seeing a good man behind bars for doing what he has always done, which is helping people. She said there have been nights where the weight of it all felt unbearable, but she also made it clear that they are not broken. Holly and Troy are standing strong, holding onto their faith, and refusing to give up in the face of a corrupt and weaponized Biden Administration. Her courage in the middle of this injustice moved me deeply.
Even now, while serving time in a facility near Colorado’s Supermax prison, Troy has not stopped helping people. He is repairing diesel generators and transport buses inside the prison without being asked and without pay. He is doing it because it is who he is, a man who fixes what is broken and makes sure things work when they are needed most.
The impact on his family, his employees, and his community is real. Elite Diesel Service employs 12 Wyomingites. Those jobs support families. That shop keeps our fire trucks ready to respond, our school buses running, our mining and agricultural equipment in the field, and our trucking industry on the road. When the federal government takes down a business like that, it sends a chilling message to every small business owner in Wyoming. Follow every burdensome regulation without question, even when it hurts your customers, or risk losing everything.
We have already seen the worst-case scenario in cases like this. In Texas, a small shop owner named Willie Lewis took his own life while facing similar EPA charges. The government dropped the case only after he died. That should never happen in a country built on fairness and due process.
There is a way forward. Under the leadership of EPA Region 8 Administrator Cyrus Western, we now have someone who understands Wyoming values and the importance of standing up for fairness. Cyrus has the opportunity to help correct this injustice, either by advocating for a pardon or by reforming enforcement so small businesses are not treated like criminals for helping their communities.
President Donald Trump has pledged to end government overreach and two-tiered justice. A presidential pardon for Troy Lake would be a powerful signal that those words will be backed by action. It would show that this country still values fairness, hard work, and common sense.
I am asking every Wyomingite to stand with Troy. This is not just about one man. It is about protecting the freedom to run a business without fear of being destroyed for doing the right thing.
Wyoming has always taken care of its own. Troy has been there for others his entire career. Now he needs us to be there for him. I call on President Trump to grant a full pardon and allow Troy to come home to his family, his employees, and his community.
We can send a message that in Wyoming, we will not stand by while government power is used to crush good people. We will fight for our neighbors. We will protect our way of life. And we will make sure that hard work and service to others are honored, not punished.
Reid Rasner
CEO, Omnivest Financial
