The wife of Ted Loza, the aide to Jim Graham arrested today on bribery charges, is a paid employee of an organization that has received hundreds of thousands of dollars in D.C. Council-directed earmarks.

Ligia X. Munoz is listed as doing “finances and administration” for Fiesta D.C., the group responsible for putting on the annual Latino festival in Mount Pleasant. It’s a group that received $200,000 in earmark funds last year ($100,000 of that directed through Graham’s public works committee), with Graham wanting to give the group more money this year.

According to Rodrigo B. Leiva, who chairs the Fiesta D.C. board, Munoz’s employment was “something discussed and approved by the board.”

Loza was a member of that board, but was recently jettisoned after the group learned of the FBI investigation, Leiva says. Fiesta D.C. is cooperating fully, he says.

LL asked if there was any connection between the council funds and Munoz’s employment. Says Leiva, “At this moment, we’d rather not make any comment because it’s an ongoing investigation.”