TALLAHASSEE, FL – Failed Florida Democrat gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum was reportedly charged with 21 felonies that were related to his 2018 bid for governor that he lost out to against Republican Ron DeSantis, according to reports.

The Department of Justice issued a press release on June 22nd announcing the charges against 42-year-old Gillum, as well as a co-defendant identified as 53-year-old Janet Lettman-Hicks, which accuses the two of engaging in conspiracy, wire fraud, and making false statements.

Per the Justice Department, Gillum and Lettman-Hicks had been involved in a scheme between 2016 and 2019 where they’d illegally gathered “funds from various entities and individuals through false and fraudulent promises and representations that the funds would be used for a legitimate purpose.”

Apparently, some of these funds were allegedly funneled through “third parties” over to a company owned by Lettman-Hicks, who would, in turn, make the funds appear to be “payroll payments” but in reality were being unlawfully diverted to Gillum “for his personal use.”

Gillum was reportedly the only individual to have been hit with the making false statements charge, per the Justice Department press release, as he allegedly lied to an FBI agent (undoubtedly one tasked with initially investigating the wire fraud case).

If convicted, the two could see decades in federal prison, as both conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. As for the making false statements charge, the aforementioned offense carries a five-year maximum sentence.

Gillum reportedly surrendered to authorities following the unsealing of the indictment, with the initial appearance slated for 2:00 p.m. on June 22nd at the United States Courthouse in Tallahassee.

The news of Gillum’s indictment follows a very public fall from grace in the wake of his failed campaign for governor in Florida, as he admitted in March of 2020 that he’d be entering a rehab facility following a scandal involving suspected methamphetamine and an alleged male prostitute.

The scandal relates to an incident that occurred on March 12th of 2020 at a Miami hotel room, where police responded to the Mondrian South Beach hotel after fire-rescue personnel were assisting a man with a possible drug overdose.

Gillum was inside of the room with the man in question, as well as one other individual, with authorities suspecting the overdose was caused by methamphetamine. Responding officers had recovered three bags of suspected meth at the time, with the police report noting that “Mr. Gillum inside the bathroom vomiting” while first responders were assisting the man suffering the suspected overdose.

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As if the booze and drug-filled episode weren’t already scandalous enough, the man who had suffered the overdose was later identified as a man by the name of Travis Dyson – who happens to be a rather popular gay male escort in Miami.

For the sake of context, Gillum is married to a wife with whom he shares three children.

Responding officers noted in their report that when they tried to converse with Gillum at the Miami hotel, he was “was unable to communicate with officers due to his inebriated state.”

In the wake of the scandal, Gillum vehemently asserted that his state of intoxication was solely due to imbibing too much alcohol. And while having too much to drink isn’t a crime, being so intoxicated to the point of vomiting while partying with male escorts as a married man did not do any favors for Gillum’s image.

This piece was written by Gregory Hoyt on June 22, 2022. It originally appeared in RedVoiceMedia.com and is used by permission.

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