TALLAHASSEE, Fla. _ Tallahassee City Commissioner Scott Maddox was indicted Wednesday on 44 charges, including racketeering, bribery, extortion, bank fraud and wire fraud, in an FBI investigation into corruption that played a key role in Democrat Andrew Gillum's campaign for Florida governor.
Maddox confidant Paige Carter-Smith, who allegedly helped him in an ongoing scheme to solicit bribes from companies seeking to do business with the city of Tallahassee, was also charged.
Gillum was dogged by his opponent, Gov.-elect Ron DeSantis, about his ties to the investigation, which included trips to New York and Costa Rica and meetings with undercover FBI agents, throughout the campaign.
But Gillum isn't mentioned in the indictment.
Maddox, a former Tallahassee mayor and former head of the state Democratic Party, was arrested Wednesday morning. In the past he has denied any wrongdoing.
A hearing in federal court is set for 3 p.m. Wednesday to set a trial date.
The three-year sting involving undercover agents ensnared Gillum, the current Tallahassee mayor, who the narrowly lost the race for governor to DeSantis on Nov. 6.
Gillum said the FBI told him he was not a subject of the probe, but DeSantis and President Donald Trump repeatedly attacked Gillum over it.
DeSantis declared him "Crooked Mayor Gillum" at one point, and in a tweet the president called Gillum a "thief."
"This guy can't even run the city of Tallahassee," DeSantis said in September shortly after the primary. "There is no way Florida voters can entrust him with our entire state."
Still, the investigation unearthed details of Gillum's friendship with a lobbyist who set up meetings between him and the undercover agents, including on trips to New York City, Las Vegas and Costa Rica.
Those details may have raised doubts about Gillum in the razor-thin election, which was decided after a recount with DeSantis winning by 32,463 votes of the more than 8.1 million cast.
