Ex-state Sen. Frank Artiles convicted in election conspiracy trial
MIAMI - Jurors on Monday night convicted former Florida Sen. Frank Artiles of three of four charges in the election conspiracy trial.
Closing arguments from the defense and prosecution concluded earlier Monday. They deliberated for several hours and the verdict was read after 7 p.m.
Artiles, 50, was accused of offering $50,000 to Alex Rodriguez, the so-called "ghost candidate," to run for office in the Florida Legislature in 2020 and to cause the Democratic incumbent to lose the election by siphoning votes away from the Democrat in the razor-thin race. Rodriguez said he was given $25,000 before the election and $25,000 afterward.
The three charges each carry a prison sentence of five years in prison. They are campaign contributions in excess of $1,000, campaign contributions conspiracy and ethics code false swearing to an oath.
He was found not guilty of the falsification of a voter registration form.
Circuit Judge Miguel M. de la O. set Oct. 21 as the date when they will discuss a future sentencing date.
Placing a "ghost candidate" on the ballot is not illegal, but paying for it is.
The state is arguing that Artiles, a former Republican state senator, made illegal contributions and encouraged Rodriguez to run for the Senate in District 37.
The defense said the money was a loan for a business transaction and unrelated to the 2020 election in which Rodriguez ran for state Senate as an independent candidate.
Defense attorney Frank Quintero portrayed Rodriguez as a scam artist who stole thousands of dollars from Artiles.
The witness said he had a driver's license in Palm Beach County and Miami-Dade County.
Rodriguez testified he was always a Republican but he was allegedly asked by Artiles to change his party affiliation.
Rodriguez, who now works for the Labor Department in Washington, D.C., said Tuesday he is happy with the outcome.
"The Miami Dade Attorneys Office is to be commended for the amount of work they did to put all this together and shine a light on these practices and get a measure of justice," Rodriguez said. "It really comes down to voter's education iff there aren't going to be any legal changes in resources in Tallahassee to deal with these problems."
Quintero said his Artiles will appeal the decision.
He received more than 6,000 votes as an independent candidate.
The incumbent, Democrat Jose Javier Rodriguez, who has the same last name as the so-called "ghost candidate," lost the election by 32 votes in a recount.
Rodriguez was arrested in March 2021 for campaign violations.
In his plea deal, Rodríguez has agreed to cooperate for the prosecution and testify against Artiles. In return, he will serve one year of house arrest and three years of probation.