Ex-FL Gubernatorial Candidate Andrew Gillum Faces 21-Count Indictment

FLORIDA — Andrew Gillum, the former Tallahassee mayor and 2018 Democratic nominee for Florida governor, is facing 21 federal charges related to a scheme to seek donations and funnel a portion of them back to him through third parties, the Department of Justice announced Wednesday.

The 42 year old's charges include conspiracy, wire fraud and making false statements, federal prosecutors said.

Sharon Janet Lettman-Hicks, 53, who is listed as the CEO of the National Black Justice Coalition, has also been indicted on similar charges.

According to the indictment, between 2016 and 2019, Gillum and Lettman-Hicks conspired to commit wire fraud, by unlawfully soliciting and obtaining funds from various entities and people through false and fraudulent promises and representations that the funds would be used for a legitimate purpose.

The indictment also accuses the pair of using 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.

Gillum and Lettman-Hicks have been charged with 19 counts of wire fraud.

Gillum has also been charged with making false statements to agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

He responded to the indictment in a statement, telling NBC that, "I have spent the last 20 years of my life in public service and continue to fight for the people. 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."

Patch has reached out to Gillum's legal team for additional comment regarding the indictment.

Gillum and Lettman-Hicks' initial appearance took place Wednesday afternoon at the United States federal courthouse in Tallahassee.

SEE ALSO:

• Andrew Gillum In Miami Beach Hotel Room Where Police Found Drugs

According to the DOJ, Gillum and Lettman-Hicks could be sentenced to a maximum of 20 years for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and 20 years for wire fraud. Making false statements, the additional charge the former Tallahassee mayor faces, carries a maximum five-year sentence.

After his unsuccessful bid for governor, in 2020, Gillum, who is married with three children, was found in a Miami Beach hotel room with an escort "under the influence of an unknown substance," police said at the time.

No charges were filed against him; however, he did enter rehab for alcohol abuse following the incident, People Magazine reported.

In an interview with Tamron Hall, Gillum discussed the scandal and also revealed that he was bisexual.

"At this stage, I don't have anything else to conceal. I literally got broken down to my most bare place, to the place where I wasn't even sure that I wanted to live — not because of what I had done but because of everything that was being said about me," he said during the interview.

"I believe we are all entitled to mistakes without having every other respectable and redeeming part of our lives invalidated," he added.

During his time as mayor, Gillum found himself under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Tampa Bay Times reported that undercover FBI agents paid for his hotel room and ticket to the Broadway musical, "Hamilton," during a 2016 trip to New York City. Gillum was charged a $5,000 ethics fine for accepting those freebies and others.