Democrat Andrew Gillum was charged in federal court on Wednesday with 21 felonies related to his failed 2018 Florida gubernatorial campaign, which he lost to Republican Ron DeSantis.
“A federal grand jury has returned a twenty-one count indictment against Andrew Demetric Gillum, 42, and Sharon Janet Lettman-Hicks, 53, both of Tallahassee, Florida,” United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida said in a statement.
Gillum claimed in a statement that he was innocent and that the charges were political, even though he is being charged by the Department of Justice, which is overseen by the Biden administration.
“The Indictment alleges that between 2016 and 2019, defendants Gillum and Lettman-Hicks conspired to commit wire fraud, by unlawfully soliciting and obtaining funds from various entities and individuals through false and fraudulent promises and representations that the funds would be used for a legitimate purpose,” the statement says. “The Indictment further alleges the defendants used third parties to divert a portion of those funds to a company owned by Lettman-Hicks, who then fraudulently provided the funds, disguised as payroll payments, to Gillum for his personal use.”
“Both defendants are charged with 19 counts of wire fraud,” the statement added. “Gillum is also charged with making false statements to agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.”
If found guilty, Gillum faces up to 5 years in prison for making false statements, 20 years in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and 20 years in prison per charge for wire fraud.
NBC News national political reporter Marc Caputo tweeted that Gillum surrendered to authorities this morning ahead of the indictment being unsealed.
The indictment confirmed that the charges stem from Gillum’s failed campaign against DeSantis, who has turned into one of the most powerfulpolitical forces in the world since winning in 2018.