North Miami Beach Dem Mayor Anthony DeFillipo was arrested last week and has been charged with three felony counts of voter fraud. He faces 15 years in prison if convicted on all counts.
Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said DeFillipo voted in a North Miami Beach district even though he no longer lived in the area. “We believe the evidence shows DeFillipo voted illegally three times,” she said. “Deliberately swearing to false information as alleged in this case eats at the credibility of our voting and electoral systems.”
DeFillipo’s attorney Michael Pizzi called the arrest politically motivated. “The mayor has explained over and over again, and under oath, he always intended to and always lived in North Miami Beach.
“As a result of that his political opponents, their campaign workers filed a complaint with the ethics commission saying the mayor was not living in North Miami Beach.”
“I totally forgot, it was an oversight and I had it fixed immediately when I noticed,” DeFillipo told NBC.
“We’re human, we make mistakes.”
“Following the news conference by State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle, the City of North Miami Beach will watch closely as the legal process runs its course,” North Miami Beach spokesperson David F. Jeannot said in a statement.
“To rebuild trust in this community is no small feat however, we are focused on earning your confidence back.
“NMB is a resilient community, and together we will emerge stronger from this.
“We thank you for your continued support as we work towards a more transparent and accountable city government,” he said.
We in law enforcement take actions which violate our election laws very seriously. They are crimes. Today, we are charging Anthony DeFillipo, the present Mayor @NorthMiamiBeach, with 3 counts of Unqualified Voters Willfully Voting, 3rd degree felonies. pic.twitter.com/pUICntyegS
— Kathy Rundle (@KathyFndzRundle) May 31, 2023
North Miami Beach Mayor Anthony DeFillipo (D) has been charged with 3 third-degrees felonies for allegedly illegally voting in 3 elections. He’s the 3rd North Miami Beach mayor to be arrested in 11 years.https://t.co/CZgPwesc8F
— RRH Elections (@RRHElections) June 2, 2023
North Miami Beach:https://t.co/0OPleITMcQ
— Grant Stern (@grantstern) May 31, 2023
