Miami Mayor "Suarez has gone on national television and echoed Trump’s claims that the indictment is part of a politically motivated campaign to attack the former president."
I depend on Michael Popok for accurate legal information especially pertaining to Florida.
AS Miami PD gears up to respond to well armed Trump supporters Miami's Mayor gears up to run for president & defend himself from multiple corruption charges.
"Although he declined to answer what he called “political” questions at Monday’s press conference, Suarez has gone on national television and echoed Trump’s claims that the indictment is part of a politically motivated campaign to attack the former president.
Suarez’s comments land at an inflection point in his mayoral career. He is expected on Thursday to announce his 2024 presidential bid near Los Angeles. Meanwhile, the FBI has opened a criminal investigation into the mayor’s business dealings with South Florida develop Rishi Kapoor, who gave Suarez $10,000 a month as a paid consultant for his development firm.
Suarez said he has not communicated with Trump ahead of tomorrow.
“I have not spoken to him,” the mayor said. “I don’t have his phone number.”
MORE AT:Miami police prepare for protests, Proud Boys’ rallies ahead of Trump’s court appearance
By Tess Riski, Updated June 12, 2023 6:56 PM
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The FBI and Securities and Exchange Commission have opened parallel investigations into developer Rishi Kapoor’s business dealings in South Florida, focusing separately on his hiring of Miami’s mayor as a consultant on local projects and his raising of funds from investors, the Miami Herald has learned.
Sources familiar with both probes say the FBI’s criminal investigation centers on $10,000 monthly payments made to Mayor Francis Suarez from a subsidiary of Kapoor’s company, Location Ventures. Special agents with the FBI’s public corruption squad began questioning witnesses this week, according to sources, zeroing in on whether the payments constitute bribes in exchange for securing permits or other favors from the mayor for Location Ventures’ mixed-use project in Coconut Grove.
Meanwhile, the SEC confirmed that it is also looking into Location Ventures in a response denying the Herald access to public records related to the agency’s inquiry. Sources say its investigators are digging deeper into whether Kapoor and his company were selling investment contracts without registering them as securities, misrepresenting potential profits to investors or misappropriating funds for personal expenses. The regulatory agency’s probe has been under way since early this year.
The heightened federal interest in Kapoor’s business and his relationship with the mayor comes after the Miami Herald exposed Location Ventures’ consulting payments to Suarezand detailed internal corporate records that indicated the mayor and his office helped Kapoor overcome a significant permitting hurdle threatening his $70 million Coconut Grove development. The Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics and Public Trust and the State Attorney’s Office have also opened inquiries.
The multiple investigations pose complications for Kapoor, an up-and-coming developer juggling pricey real estate ventures from South Dade to Fort Lauderdale, as well as for Suarez, who is expected to announce a campaign for the Republican presidential nomination this month.
MORE AT:
FBI investigates developer’s payments to Miami’s mayor as SEC digs into company’s finances
By Jay Weaver Updated June 10, 2023 4:24 PM
Because of the 'bothsidesism' of U.S. corporate news sometimes foreign news is more accurate.
Keep watching the Miami Herald as Trump's arraignment, booking and potential extreme violence proceeds in Miami.
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