Campaign donations to Diaz de la Portilla’s PAC dried up after corruption charges

Political contributions to a committee supporting the reelection campaign of suspended Miami Commissioner Alex Díaz de la Portilla came to a halt and legal bills spiked after he was arrested last month on corruption charges, according to campaign finance records released Tuesday.

The reports show that Proven Leadership of Miami-Dade County PC raised about $389,800 this summer from contributions that came in steadily nearly every week, until mid-September, days before Díaz de la Portilla was arrested on Sept. 14. After tens of thousands of dollars came from real estate entities, lobbyists, consultants and hospitality interests, the committee received no campaign checks from Sept. 12 through Sept. 30, the end of the reporting period — and one $25,000 check from a local nightclub owner was returned days after the arrest.

The committee is one of the entities at the center of an investigation that led Broward County prosecutors and the Florida Department Law Enforcement to arrest Díaz de la Portilla and charge him with money laundering, unlawful compensation, bribery and official misconduct, among other charges. Gov. Ron DeSantis suspended him a day later.

Díaz de la Portilla is accused of sponsoring a wealthy Miami couple’s proposal to build a $10 million athletic facility in a city park in exchange for hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign cash and swanky hotel rooms.

Lobbyist and attorney William “Bill” Riley Jr. was also charged for his alleged participation in a scheme that investigators say included unreported campaign contributions and undisclosed gifts.

Read more: Commissioner spent 57 days in Miami’s ‘ultimate business playground.’ Then he was arrested

Both have denied wrongdoing. The first court hearings for both are scheduled for Friday morning.

Díaz de la Portilla is running for reelection in Miami’s District 1 and facing opposition from Miguel Gabela, Francisco “Frank” Pichel, Mercedes Rodriguez and Marvin Tapia. Finance reports for contributions made directly to his official reelection campaign are due Friday.

On Aug. 25, a company managed by nightclub mogul Roman Jones, owner of Kiki on The River, gave the Proven Leadership committee $25,000. Records show that on Sept. 18, the contribution was returned. Jones did not immediately respond to requests for comment Tuesday evening.

When the Miami Herald asked Díaz de la Portilla why the committee returned the check, he said he had “no idea” in a text message, adding that the reporter should ask the committee.

Díaz de la Portilla became the treasurer and registered agent of the committee in recent weeks after the previous treasurer resigned, according to state records. The former treasurer, Nancy Brown, told investigators that Díaz de la Portilla controlled “all aspects” of the committee, “directly and indirectly, with regard to political financing,” according to Díaz de la Portilla’s arrest affidavit. Brown could not be immediately reached Tuesday evening.

Asked if he thought the charges impacted the committee’s fundraising haul, Díaz de la Portilla demurred.

“We have what we need to counter your lies,” he wrote in a text message. “We will win and win big. Sorry if that bothers you and the clan. Around 2 million plus. That should be enough.”

As of Sept. 30, the committee had about $1.4 million cash on hand, according to public campaign records.

The largest expenditure during the reporting period was on legal fees. The committee paid Benedict Kuehne, Díaz de la Portilla’s defense attorney, $150,000 six days after the arrest.

Large donations included $50,000 from Suntex Marina Investors, a company that in 2021 submitted an unsolicited bid to redevelop the city-owned Rickenbacker Marina — a plan supported by Díaz de la Portilla. His support for the deal factors into allegations in a separate civil lawsuit that accuses Díaz de la Portilla of attempting to “shake down” the marina’s current operator by pressuring the operator to hire one of the commissioner’s associates as a partner.

The suit, filed nine days before Díaz de la Portilla’s arrest, is pending in Miami-Dade Circuit Court. Díaz de la Portilla has denied the allegations and asked a judge to delay hearing the case until after the upcoming election.

Read more: Miami commissioner sued for alleged “shakedown” of Rickenbacker Marina’s operator

The biggest contributor to the committee was another political group controlled by former Miami Commissioner Marc Sarnoff, a Shutts and Bowen attorney who lobbies for several clients in the city. The Sarnoff committee, Truth is the Daughter of Time, gave Díaz de la Portilla’s committee $100,000 in two separate contributions in mid-August and early September.

Reached on his cellphone Tuesday evening, Sarnoff was asked if he still supported Díaz de la Portilla’s reelection bid. He let out a long sigh before responding.

“How about I just don’t say anything,” he said. “No comment.”