Florida’s Attorney General James Uthmeier announced that Kissimmee's Mayor Jackie Espinosa was arrested Wednesday on charges of grand theft and scheming to defraud.
Uthmeier said Espinosa misused the Kissimmee Business Boost 2.0 program, a program that helped small businesses after the Covid pandemic. He said Espinosa applied for and received city funds of $50,000.
“The evidence makes it very clear that there was intent to engage in this conflict of interest that ultimately abused her office to enrich herself,” Uthmeier said. “Mayor Espinosa demonstrated an intent to create, streamline, and simplify, reduce oversight of and more easily enable a process whereby herself and immediate family could apply for and receive city funds to which she was not entitled.”
Her arrest was carried out by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and she was booked at the Osceola County Jail.
Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia said his office was conducting a routine audit of local governments and their Covid related grant programs, when the office noticed irregularities with Kissimmee's Business Boost 2.0 program. Ingoglia said they dug further.
“Seven businesses located in properties owned or managed by Jackie Espinosa's family received a combined total of $90,000 in grant funds,” Ingoglia said. “50,000 went to Espinosa's businesses, while $40,000 went to tenants in Espinosa's businesses. So $50,000 directly, $40,000 indirectly. During the course of the DFS investigation, we found that Jackie Espinosa herself applied for the grants on behalf of her family's businesses.”
Ingoglia said Espinosa could face up to 30 years in prison.
“Public service means that you work for the public,” Ingoglia said. “It is about public service, not self-service.”
