Former deputy David Rivera (R-Fla.) Was fined $ 456,000 by a federal court on Tuesday for his role in a campaign financing scheme.
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida ordered Rivera to pay the money to the Federal Election Commission (FEC), which had sued him in 2017 for secretly providing funds to a major challenger to his eventual Democratic opponent in the 2012 elections. according to the details established in the court order.
Rivera lost the election to the former Democratic representative. Joe Garcia
Jose (Joe) Antonio GarciaNight Defense: Biden honors McCain at a funeral ceremony in Phoenix | US considers sending captured ISIS fighters to Gitmo and Iraq | Senators pressure Trump over the end of the civil war in Yemen Biden pays tribute to McCain in the emotional memorial service Mueller accusations: Congress candidate asked for information about Russian opponents MORE (Florida).
The commission accused Rivera of starting the scheme in April 2012, when he ordered an associate, Ana Sol Alliegro, to offer Justin Sternad, one of Garcia’s three main opponents, financial support for his campaign. Sternad accepted the offer and Alliegro spent the following months transmitting funds for Sternad’s campaign.
The Court rejected the initial complaint against Rivera in 2018, and the FEC changed the complaint in January 2019, accusing him of consciously channeling campaign money “on behalf of another”.
The FEC said in a press release who sought a civil fine of $ 456,000.
The Court concluded that Rivera channeled $ 75,927.31 in campaign money to Sternad. In addition to the fine, the court also permanently banned Rivera from violating the campaign statute again.
In it Tuesday order, US District Judge Marcia Cooke described Rivera’s actions as “flagrant”, adding that there was a chance that his conduct would continue, noting that he continued to run for office after the scheme.
“Perhaps because the Court prohibits Rivera from engaging in similar illegal conduct in the future, ‘that will suffice’ to convince Rivera – a former US congressman – to stop violating the law,” Cooke wrote.
Rivera said The Miami Herald in a text that the order is “all based on lies, innuendo, rumors and false news”.
Tuesday’s order was the first Rivera penally faced over the scheme, according to the Herald, which revealed in 2012. The newspaper noted that Sternad and Alliegro were convicted on criminal charges.