Today former Florida Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum, who unsuccessfully ran against Gov. Ron DeSantis, was indicted with 21 charges relating to his 2018 campaign.
Gillum was charged alongside Sharon Janet Lettman-Hicks, the CEO of the National Black Justice Coalition.
According to the Department of Justice, the pair “conspired to commit wire fraud” when they solicited and obtained funds “from various entities and individuals through false and fraudulent promises and representations” and further alleged that Gillum and his co-defendant “used third parties to divert a portion of those funds to a company owned by Lettman-Hicks.”
Lettman-Hicks then allegedly “fraudulently provided the funds, disguised as payroll payments, to Gillum for his personal use.”
If true, this process could have allowed Gillum to skirt existing laws about how much a candidate can receive on pay from his campaign, or avoid reporting the compensation he received while running for office.
The Department of Justice reports that both defendants are charged with 19 counts of wire fraud, but Gillum is also charged with making false statements to the FBI.
If found guilty, the pair could be looking at decades in prison. According to the Department of Justice, Gillum could face a combined 45 years:
- 5 years: Making False Statements
- 20 years: Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud
- 20 years: Wire Fraud
After losing his gubernatorial race, a collection of 26 photographs surfaced that allegedly show Gillum experiencing a drug-related event in a hotel room with two other men. Police later released body cam video showing them enter the hotel room.
Lettman-Hicks’ LinkedIn account reveals that she has worked in politics, mostly for Democratic groups and causes, since at least 2001. In that year, Lettman-Hicks says she was the Executive Vice President for the People for the American Way Foundation. The People for the American Way Foundation is described as a “progressive advocacy agency”.
She was also an Executive Search Consultant for Florida A&M University briefly in 2015.
Gillum is not seeking the Democratic nomination for governor in 2022.
This is a breaking news story and may be updated with additional information.
