Florida
ticker
politician
Andrew Gillum, Bisexual Florida Politician, Charged with Fraud
an out bisexual man who was the 2018 Democratic nominee in the race for Florida governor, has been indicted on 21 counts, including charges of conspiracy, wire fraud, and making false statements.On Wednesday, a federal grand jury returned an indictment against Gillum, a former mayor of Tallahassee, and a longtime associate and fellow Tallahassee resident, Sharon Lettman-Hicks.According to the indictment, between 2016 and 2019, Gillum and Lettman-Hicks “engaged in an on-going and evolving scheme to defraud by unlawfully soliciting and obtaining funds from various entities and individuals through false and fraudulent representations and promises that the funds would be used for a legitimate purpose.”Gillum and Lettman-Hicks then allegedly used third parties to divert a portion of those funds to P&P, a communications company owned by Lettman-Hicks, who then provided the funds, disguised as payroll payments, to Gillum for his personal use.Both defendants have been charged with 19 counts of wire fraud, and Gillum is also charged with making false statements to FBI agents investigating the suspected fraud, according to a press release for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida.If convicted of the charges against them, Gillum and Lettman-Hicks could face up to 20 years in prison for the conspiracy charge, and 20 years for wire fraud.