Reckoning looms for Florida G.O.P.

A tangled web of Republican officials, lobbyists, and private LLC's connect to embattled former tax collector Joel Greenberg. It spells trouble for some in the state's G.O.P.

When Seminole County Tax Collector Joel Greenberg was indicted by federal prosecutors in the middle of his primary campaign last June, Republicans across the state of Florida did not take to the presses to register their shock, nor lock arms in his public defense. Instead, they said, well, pretty much nothing.

That near-universal silence was notable, since at the time the only public victim of Greenberg’s crimes was his Republican primary opponent for tax collector, a local teacher named Brian Beute. According to that June indictment, Greenberg tried to destroy Beute’s campaign by assuming false identities of students and teachers in the school where Beute taught and sending letters to school administrators alleging Beute sexually assaulted a male student. Beute was placed on administrative leave—even though the allegations were completely baseless. Ultimately, Greenberg was arrested and charged for the sabotage. But Beute, a lifelong Republican, received no vigorous defense (or any defense at all) from his colleagues in the Florida G.O.P. And now that silence is becoming circumstantial evidence of its own.

Sources close to Greenberg’s case have indicated for several months that there are broader financial and political crimes which may implicate many of Greenberg’s political associates and other Republicans down in Florida. As federal authorities inch closer to a wide range of financial corruption that appears to have taken place during Greenberg’s tenure and Greenberg himself considers cooperating, these sources say he has knowledge of evidence which could implicate no less than half a dozen—and perhaps more—G.O.P. power brokers and operatives across the state.

Specifically, this writer can confirm previously unreported information about a government contract between the Seminole County Tax Collector’s office while Greenberg ran it and limited liability company called “MAGA Advisory Group Associates, LLC” for inexplicable monthly payments. Sources also tell this writer that questions about the 2020 candidacy of a curious third party candidate for Seminole County Tax Collector, who ran using a name similar to the Democratic nominee that year without raising or spending any campaign money, are under scrutiny by local authorities. The candidate withdrew from the race on the same day Greenberg did—just days after it was revealed federal prosecutors had indicted the former tax collector. This writer can reveal that a local elections officer has filed a complaint about the candidate with Florida elections officials, and that sources close to the investigation believe the candidate may have been illegally funded by Greenberg or his associates.

In some cases, resignations have signaled the seriousness of the situation for Florida Republicans. Early January saw Halsey Beshears, the Florida Secretary of Business and Professional Development and a Governor Ron DeSantis appointee, resign ostensibly for “personal health reasons.” But just days ago, the Tallahassee Democrat reported Beshears was on the now-infamous plane trip to the Bahamas with Rep. Matt Gaetz and surgeon/marijuana entrepreneur Jason Pirozzolo—a trip now under investigation by federal law enforcement. Pirozzolo himself took sudden leave from his medical office on Saturday morning, suspending his practice until further notice due to a “family emergency.” Another Greenberg-affiliated resignation arrived just hours earlier last Friday night: Florida lobbyist and Greenberg ally Chris Dorworth, whom the New York Times reported was involved in a conversation with Gaetz about planting another third party candidate to siphon votes from a Democrat in a Florida state Senate race, left his longtime lobbying firm, Ballard Partners. The discussion between Gaetz and Dorworth is also reportedly under scrutiny by federal investigators.

And just this afternoon, the Orlando Sentinel published detailed reporting on a number of contracts doled out to GOP officials by Greenberg using taxpayer money. They include payments to Matt Morgan, a GOP candidate for Seminole County Commissioner; Megan Zalonka, a person who reportedly worked for Pirozzolo and was also subpoenaed by prosecutors as far back as last August, according to a neighbor; and Eric Foglesong, a consultant who allegedly provided support to an third-party candidate who filed to run in a state Senate election, but then never raised or spent any money.

The newer threads about payments to MAGA Advisory and questions regarding an additional third party candidate for tax collector hang from a larger fabric of alleged financial corruption that appears to have taken place during Greenberg’s tenure, most of which has gone largely undiscussed as the explosive allegations involving Gaetz, sex, and wild parties have taken center stage. But the litany of financial ties between Greenberg and local Republican politicians, candidates, lobbyists, and political operatives poses an increasingly dire threat to powerful forces in the Florida G.O.P.

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Last week, a third superseding indictment leveled eleven additional charges at Greenberg, all financial crimes. He now stands accused of wire fraud, embezzling $400,000 of taxpayer money to buy cryptocurrency for himself, and bribing an SBA official to receive a CARES Act loan while out on bail—in addition to harassing and stalking his opponent, identity theft, and human trafficking. Intriguingly, the new indictment appears carefully limited to crimes that primarily involve Greenberg and no one else. It does not yet implicate people outside the tax collector office in Greenberg’s Seminole County schemes, other than an official at the Small Business Administration and someone who helped facilitate the CARES Act loan.

But Greenberg’s schemes in using the Seminole County Tax Collector office’s money were numerous and involved others, at least on the receiving end. For starters, Greenberg spent $3.5 million in taxpayer money on contracts to close associates, many of whom were lobbyists or political consultants. Auditors have questioned as much as $5 million in spending by Greenberg. The Daily Beast reported one auditor found $300,000 in suspect expenses on a Seminole County Tax Collector credit card used by Greenberg. But neither the $3.5 million in contracts nor the $5 million in questionable spending nor the $300,000 in credit card spending have been addressed in any of the existing Greenberg indictments, suggesting prosecutors may expect Greenberg to explain where that money went—and in turn, possibly implicate others. The Sentinel reported in December that prosecutors subpoenaed documents related to the contracts.

One source with detailed knowledge of the investigation told this writer that Greenberg directly ordered payments to that Florida-based limited liability company, MAGA Advisory Group Associates, LLC. This source says that Greenberg ordered payments to MAGA Advisory to the tune of $2,500 per month for “Corporate Liaison” services beginning in 2017. There is no website that details work done by the organization.

A records request to the Seminole County Tax Collector’s office corroborated the source’s story, turning up a consulting contract between the Seminole County Tax Collector and MAGA Advisory for $2,500 per month in exchange for services that included event planning, community outreach, and communication support. The records request turned up no information about what work MAGA Advisory actually did in exchange for the money. Additional documents show at least $4,000 was paid to MAGA Advisory by Seminole County taxpayers in 2018.

There is little public information on the MAGA Advisory Group entity, other than that it is registered to a Florida woman named Leslie Ann “L.A.” Key, who has no discernible occupation. Key’s name and what appears to be her signature appear on the consulting contract with the tax collector office. Efforts to reach her were unsuccessful. Two sources report that they have met Key on several occasions, and said that she is a frequent attendee at MAGA-related events across Florida.

Per photos on social media, Key has met former President Donald Trump and socializes with close Trump associate, Roger Stone. Stone has publicly acknowledged that he knew and spent time with Greenberg, but insists he was unaware of any of his alleged criminal schemes. An Instagram account that appears to belong to Key is currently blank, but the account is followed by Joel Greenberg’s wife, as well as Seminole County Elections Supervisor Chris Anderson and—curiously—a private account belonging to Roger Stone associate and Florida Proud Boys chapter leader, Tyler Ziolkowski.

If the woman who controls “MAGA Advisory Group, LLC” has further links to Stone or Ziolkowski, those connections might intrigue investigators. That’s in part because Jacob Engels, a close associate of both Stone and Ziolkowski, spent significant time with Greenberg and frequently wrote flattering stories about him on his far-right blog, the Central Florida Post. He also allegedly promoted smears of Greenberg’s political opponent, Brian Beute, on Facebook just days before Greenberg was indicted for fabricating allegations against him.

There is no confirmed link between Engels’ online activity and payments issued to strange corporate entities by the Seminole County Tax Collector’s office. But sources with knowledge of Greenberg’s conduct while tax collector have long suspected he may have paid the Stone associate for internet posts which helped him politically.

While that remains unconfirmed, there are limits on government officials directing taxpayer funds to political organizations—especially for personal benefit. Federal investigators are likely to have questions about what MAGA Advisory Group was doing on behalf of Seminole County taxpayers.

Intriguingly, Engels and Ziolkowski were reportedly questioned in front of a federal grand jury in 2019 about whether Stone had ever paid them for any of the work they do, according to Ziolkowski. One source told this writer that Engels retained a criminal defense attorney after Greenberg was indicted last June. He’s been largely quiet since the Greenberg story exploded last month.

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Another curiosity that might attract attention from investigators: the candidacy of a Florida resident, Dani Mora Day, for tax collector in 2020. Day joined the race on June 10, 2020, just two days before the deadline and a few weeks before Greenberg was indicted. Day raised no money outside the filing fee to run, and did not make a single campaign expenditure during the election. Each campaign filing statement is blank: $0 in fundraising, $0 in expenditures.

Things start looking nefarious when you consider the Democratic candidate for Seminole County Tax Collector in 2020: Lynn Moira Dictor. The similarity between the names Dani Mora Day and Lynn Moira Dictor is especially intriguing in light of new reports Florida Republicans schemed to run candidates with similar names to Democrats to confuse voters and siphon votes from Democratic candidates. Dani Mora Day was permitted to run “NPA” (No Party Affiliation) and did not have to win any primary to be included on the November general election ballot.

But it gets worse. Emails from the Seminole County Supervisor of Elections office viewed by this writer show that Day filed a proof of voter registration on June 12 to show eligibility to run for office. But the name attached to the proof of voter registration was not “Dani Mora Day.”

It was Daniel L. Day, a male candidate who ran for the same office in 2016, again raising and spending no money during the entire the campaign. Furthermore, his voter registration showed that he was a registered Republican; yet he did not run as a Republican primary opponent against Joel Greenberg, opting instead to run NPA which would guarantee himself a spot on the November ballot with Dictor.

Day’s candidacy ended almost as soon as it began: Greenberg was indicted on June 23 and withdrew his candidacy on June 26; “Dani Mora Day” withdrew on the same day.

Problems with Day’s candidacy have already generated complaints from the local elections bureau. Officials at the Seminole County Elections Commission registered concerns about Day’s name change from 2016 to 2020, and asked him to sign an affidavit that he was really known by the nickname “Dani Mora Day” at the time he filed to run on June 10. Such affidavits are common in Florida: two other candidates in the tax collector race, including Dictor and the current occupant of the office, J.R. Kroll, were both required to file affidavits as well.

One Commission staffer recalled that “Dani Mora Day” provided evidence to the Commission that he did a sports or media podcast or radio spot under that nickname, but could not remember the specifics about what exactly was provided. The official took care to note that their office is not allowed to weigh the credibility of evidence offered in support of a nickname affidavit; they are required to accept anything provided by a candidate as valid. She said several complaints related to Day’s candidacy were later filed with the Florida Division of Elections.

The official herself filed a complaint against Day related to his candidacy: she said he failed to file a proper termination request when he ended his campaign after just 16 days, as required by Florida law. Efforts to get in touch with Day have been unsuccessful. The official says she remembers calling his phone number to follow up on the termination of his campaign, only to find out it had been disconnected. She is unaware if there is a criminal investigation into Day’s candidacy, but stressed that she was required to authorize it—as well as file her complaint—in light of her position as a local elections administrator.

Day’s candidacy is curious for its brevity. Other third party candidates that allegedly ran to siphon votes from Democrats followed through with their “campaigns” through November general elections. But Day withdrew (and failed to terminate properly) just 16 days after he first filed to run—at the same time Greenberg was indicted and also withdrew. Sources question whether Greenberg or others were involved in Day’s effort to get on the ballot, which could be a crime if funds were illegally funneled to Day to do so.

The name Chris Anderson, the Seminole County Supervisor of Elections, appears atop Day’s voter registration proof sheet. Anderson previously served as lead investigator for the tax collector’s office, appointed to the position by none other than Joel Greenberg. As lead investigator, he earned a near-six-figure salary. He was later recommended to Governor Ron DeSantis for appointment to the Supervisor of Elections job by DeSantis’s transition team, on which Rep. Matt Gaetz and lobbyist Chris Dorworth both sat.

Dorworth, of course, resigned Friday night, attributing his departure to the Category 5 media hurricane whose eye is sitting directly over Seminole County, Florida. Given the report that investigators are already examining one conversation where Dorworth allegedly discussed planting a state Senate candidate to siphon votes from a Democrat, it’s hard to imagine they won’t look into whether he or Greenberg worked with others to run “Dani Mora Day” to siphon votes from Democratic candidate Lynn Moira Dictor in November 2020.

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Last night, another source close to the investigation began attacking Greenberg’s credibility while speaking anonymously to Politico. He claimed that Greenberg and Gaetz merely enjoyed taking care of young women they slept with (“Is that prostitution? Maybe if you’re a Puritan.”) and alleged that Greenberg tried to entrap him by texting him with concerns about the investigation last summer, accusing Greenberg of using the “same playbook” he used against Brian Beute. This writer has heard rumors that the anonymous source behind the comments may be an individual who recently resigned and is mentioned earlier in this article (and thus perhaps someone with some skin in the game).

That might explain why those comments were fairly unmoored from reality. Greenberg never tried to entrap Beute, but instead brazenly fabricated allegations against him out of whole cloth—hardly the same “playbook” by any stretch of the imagination. Texting your close political ally about your concerns regarding your looming prosecution for political crimes is probably a natural reaction for most defendants in these kinds of criminal cases. The anonymous source’s framing of Greenberg’s texts to him as some effort to entrap him makes this writer think he doth protest too much. The weakness of the defense of Gaetz by downplaying any exchange of funds for sexual encounters as mere “sugar daddy” activity should tell you all you need to know about the dire situation facing those currently under federal investigation in the Sunshine State.

It appears Republican officials, lobbyists and “consultants” ensnared in the deepening swamp of the former tax collector’s operation have begun a campaign to discredit Greenberg—no real surprise in light of the news he’s considering a plea deal. But those Seminole County Tax Collector contracts and other evidence regarding third party candidates across the state of Florida may provide the kind of corroboration which proves Greenberg is the one telling the truth, if he ultimately decides to do so.

Is your head spinning yet? Welcome to the 2021 reckoning of the Florida G.O.P.