There’s more news coming out of Florida’s capital city involving the ongoing public corruption investigation that involves the city of Tallahassee and public officials.
A report published Friday in the Tallahassee Democrat, says Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum went on a luxury vacation to Costa Rica with friends, lobbyists and investors in May of 2016.
According to the report, during the trip, Gillum received an electronic invite from a long-time associate and investor to attend a meeting later in Tallahassee with supposed “developer” Mike Miller. The Democrat reports that Miller was actually an undercover FBI agent.
The invitation came from Adam Corey, who was also on the trip with Gillum and is an investor in The Edison restaurant that sits in a downtown Tallahassee park and which received tax breaks from the city. Corey and Gillum have reportedly been friends since college.
In addition to Gillum and Corey, the Tallahassee newspaper reports another Edison investor, Sean Pittman, went on the vacation.
The latest developments come a day after it was learned that the FBI had obtained a new subpoena focusing primarily on Corey. The FBI is reportedly seeking documents about the Edison deal. The restaurant and its investors were granted $2.1 million in taxpayer money by the city’s Community Redevelopment Agency to help with the restaurant’s renovation and construction.
Gillum, who is running for the Democratic nomination for governor, reportedly has since cut ties with Corey, who at one point served as the mayor’s campaign treasurer.
Gillum has claimed that law enforcement officials have assured him he is not the target of the FBI’s investigation. But, if the reports are accurate, the Tallahassee Democrat says it would be the first time that Gillum has been connected to the reported undercover FBI agents.
Those who went on the Costa Rican trip reportedly split a $1,400-a-night luxury villa. State law prohibits public officials from accepting gifts from individuals who may be trying to influence a vote or a decision by a government official or body. The mayor’s chief of staff says Gillum paid for all of his expenses.
Chillaxin’ at an expensive Central American resort with the wifey while setting the stage back home for a lucrative payoff among friends.
Hard worker that Mayor Gillum.