Florida Keys tourism promoter charged with perjury. Billed taxpayers for non-existent firm
Monroe County prosecutors Tuesday charged the head of public relations for the Florida Keys taxpayer-funded tourism agency with multiple counts of perjury and making false statements regarding billing for a company investigators say does not exist.
The charges against Andy Newman, who has handled public relations for the Monroe County Tourist Development Council for decades, come months after an audit by the county’s comptroller concluded he was reimbursed tens of thousands of dollars annually for services he claimed were performed by the company.
Newman owns NewmanPR, which the tourism agency paid nearly $2 million in fiscal year 2023, according to the Monroe County clerk’s office. Services he provides include PR production, production supervision, distribution supervision and photography.
The Tourist Development Council is funded annually by nearly $60 million the county collects from a 4% tax levied on every hotel and short-term rental room booking in the Keys.
For years, Newman’s also been billing the county for services for a company called Graphics71, which the clerk’s office said in its February 187-page audit is the same company as NewmanPR and provides the same services under the scope of Newman’s contract with the tourism agency.
Thousands billed to county for non-existent company
“In other words, NewmanPR used a nonexistent company as a conduit to claim they made payments eligible for reimbursement when, in fact, no payments were made for there to be valid reimbursable expenses,” the report states. “The President of NewmanPR appeared to use this nonexistent company as a method to pay himself in addition to the agency fee NewmanPR received monthly from Monroe County,” the report states.
Kevin Madok, the county comptroller, said that in fiscal year 2023, the county reimbursed Newman $31,965 for services he said were performed by Graphics71. Newman countered, however, that the actual number was $10,634.
Newman, who could not immediately be reached for comment for this story, called the allegations in the audit “absolutely false” when the Herald reported about the investigation in February.
Newman’s attorney, Russell Yagel, did not immediately respond for a request for comment from the Miami Herald Tuesday.
Monroe County State Attorney Dennis Ward launched his own investigation in the wake of the audit that “uncovered a series of false declarations made by Newman concerning payments” issued to Graphics71, his office said in a statement Tuesday.
“Our investigation underscores the seriousness of these offenses. Integrity and honesty are cornerstones of public service, and we are committed to prosecuting those who engage in deceitful practices that undermine public trust,” Ward said in a prepared statement.
Newman is charged with 14 counts of perjury when not in an official proceeding — a first-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in county jail, and 14 counts of issuing false statements, a second-degree misdemeanor that carries a sentence of up to six months in jail.
As of Tuesday afternoon, Newman had not been booked into jail. A county judge set his bond at $105,000, according to an order obtained by the Herald.
Ward told the Herald that Yagel said Newman would turn himself in.
This is a breaking news story that will be updated as more information becomes available.
