Kissimmee mayor arrested on theft and fraud charges tied to COVID relief grants

Kissimmee, Florida – Kissimmee Mayor Jackie Espinosa has been arrested on felony theft and fraud charges following a state investigation into the awarding of COVID-19 business relief grants, Florida officials announced Oct. 21.

Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia and Attorney General James Uthmeier said the case concerns allegations that Espinosa used her public position to improperly influence funding decisions under the city’s Business Boost 2.0 grant program. The charges are allegations, not findings of guilt.

The investigation followed a routine Department of Financial Services audit examining how local governments used grants and COVID-19-related funding. According to the department, that review raised concerns about whether Espinosa had used her authority as mayor to influence the distribution of money.

Investigators identified seven businesses operating in properties owned or managed by members of Espinosa’s family that received a combined $90,000 in grants. The department said $50,000 went to Espinosa’s businesses, while the remaining $40,000 went to tenants in her buildings.

Those figures distinguish the funding awarded to businesses associated with Espinosa herself from the separate awards received by tenants. Both categories were identified during the department’s examination of the grant program.

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The Department of Financial Services Criminal Investigations Division and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Office of Executive Investigations were involved in the case. FDLE’s Office of Executive Investigations conducted the criminal investigation into the awards with assistance from the financial services investigators.

“The voters put their trust in their public officials to do what is best for their community, not what is best for themselves. Jackie Espinosa abused that trust and cashed in at the taxpayers’ expense. It is called public service for a reason, not self-service. When I took office, I promised I would root out waste, fraud, abuse, and corruption, and today I am fulfilling that promise for the people of Kissimmee.”

Ingoglia made those remarks in the announcement of the arrest. Uthmeier separately alleged that Espinosa pursued funding for family businesses despite having been warned that doing so was prohibited.

“Public officials do not get to write the rules and then write themselves a check,” said Attorney General James Uthmeier. “The mayor used her position to push a COVID relief grant program, then took $50,000 from it for her family’s businesses after being warned it was prohibited. Florida taxpayers funded that money to help small businesses recover, not to enrich the mayor who controlled it.”

DFS Criminal Investigations Division Director Luis Negrete referred the matter to FDLE’s Office of Executive Investigations. He also forwarded information to the Florida Commission on Ethics and to the special prosecutor appointed to oversee an ethics complaint against Espinosa. The announcement said the Kissimmee City Commission had requested the special prosecutor’s involvement.

The referrals placed information from the department’s review before both criminal investigators and officials handling ethics matters. The release did not announce a finding or outcome in the ethics complaint.

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FDLE Commissioner Larry Keefe credited the initial audit and the subsequent investigative work in his comments about the case.

“Today’s arrest shows exactly why accountability matters. The Department of Financial Services found the case through their rigorous audits, and FDLE matched that diligence with a thorough and uncompromising investigation,” said FDLE Commissioner Larry Keefe. “We appreciate CFO Ingoglia’s commitment to safeguarding taxpayer dollars and Attorney General Uthmeier’s leadership in prioritizing public integrity across this state. Public office is a responsibility, not an opportunity for personal gain. When that trust is violated, FDLE will use every resource available to investigate it. Government must protect the people and their trust, and every public official in this state will be held to the law they swore to uphold.”

Uthmeier and the Office of the Statewide Prosecutor filed a grand theft charge involving $20,000 or more but less than $100,000, classified in the announcement as a second-degree felony. They also filed a scheme to defraud charge involving $50,000 or more, classified as a first-degree felony.

The announcement describes the audit, investigative referrals and charges but does not include a response from Espinosa or her legal representatives. It also does not provide a court date or report any judicial determination of the allegations.