Andrew Gillum campaigning in 2018. (Photo from Wikimedia Commons)
Andrew Gillum, the 2018 Democratic candidate for Florida governor and former mayor of Tallahassee, and his longtime advisor, Sharon Lettman-Hicks, were arrested by federal authorities June 22 after a grand jury returned a 21-count indictment against them.
First reported by NBC News, Gillum, 42, and Lettman-Hicks, 53, were arrested on campaign-related charges that include conspiracy, wire fraud and making false statements. Gillum and Lettman-Hicks will appear before a judge this afternoon in a Tallahassee courtroom.
According to the Department of Justice, 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 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. Gillum is also charged with making false statements to agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
“I have spent the last 20 years of my life in public service and continue to fight for the people,” Gillum said in a written statement released June 22. “Every campaign I’ve run has been done with integrity. Make no mistake that this case is not legal, it is political. Throughout my career I have always stood up for the people of Florida and have spoken truth to power. There’s been a target on my back ever since I was the mayor of Tallahassee. They found nothing then, and I have full confidence that my legal team will prove my innocence now.”
Gillum, a married father of three, lost the 2018 Florida gubernatorial race to Gov. Ron DeSantis by less than 35,000 votes. In March 2020, Gillum made headlines when he was involved in a public sex scandal when he was caught intoxicated in a Miami hotel room with two other men, including one in an overdose situation.
After the police report became public, Gillum said in a statement that he was in Miami Beach for a wedding and did not use illegal drugs with the other guys.
“While I had too much to drink, I want to be clear that I have never used methamphetamines,” Gillum said.
Gillum was admitted to a rehabilitation clinic days after the incident. In an interview with NBC’s Tamron Hall in September 2020, Gillum revealed that he identifies as bisexual.
Gillum and Lettman-Hicks face a maximum of five years for making false statements, 20 years for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and 20 years for wire fraud.
