Former Kissimmee commissioner, county commission candidate sentenced for campaign finance violations
A former Kissimmee city commissioner who was accused of entering a 2022 race for Osceola County Commissioner as a “ghost candidate” was sentenced to jail Tuesday for campaign finance violations.
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According to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, their investigation into Carlos Irizarry’s campaign began when they were notified of allegations that he was offered money to enter the race only to affect the outcome by taking votes from opposing candidate Jackie Espinosa.
After a nine-month investigation, Irizarry was arrested in May on nine counts of willful certification of false or incomplete campaign reports and five counts of failure to report campaign expenditures, all misdemeanors.
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According to court documents, Irizarry certified campaign treasurer reports despite knowing they contained false information.
Irizarry told the court Tuesday that he didn’t read the Florida statute on campaign financing and didn’t keep track of his expenses.
He later admitted he did read some of the statue and learned more about it after advising other campaigns.
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An Osceola County jury found Irizarry guilty Tuesday of all 14 charges he faced. He was sentenced to 180 days in jail followed by probation and community service.
Irizarry was taken directly into custody. Also a former Kissimmee city councilman, Irizarry maintains he was never paid to run.
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