M.G.B., a former petition worker from Gainesville, has been found guilty on multiple counts of identity fraud connected to a failed attempt to expand casino gambling in Florida.
Guilty on 13 Counts
The 26-year-old woman was convicted on 13 of 16 counts of personal identification fraud after investigators linked her to a large number of fake petition signatures during Las Vegas Sands Corp’s controversial 2021 ballot campaign.
She was initially arrested in August 2023, booked at the Alachua County Jail on an $80,000 bond, and eventually transferred to the Marion County Jail.
She pleaded not guilty in September and waived her right to a speedy trial at the end of the same year.
Each of the 13 counts is classified as a second-degree felony under Florida law, which means they each carry a potential sentence of up to 15 years in prison.
If Judge Peter Brightam, who presided over the case prosecuted by assistant state attorney Janine Nixon, imposes the maximum penalty on all 13 counts, M.B. could face as much as 195 years behind bars.
Two more charges tied to separate conduct increase her total possible sentence to a staggering 210 years.
The Controversial Backstory
In 2021, Las Vegas Sands invested nearly $50 million into a political action committee named Florida Voters in Charge (FVC) with the purpose of putting a measure on the 2022 ballot that would allow existing card rooms in North Florida to convert into full-scale casinos.
The measure would have potentially led the way for LVS to enter Florida by acquiring a card room in the Jacksonville area.
The Seminole Tribe of Florida, which holds exclusive rights to casino gambling in the state, used millions of dollars to fight back.
Eventually, both sides ended up accusing one another of using dirty tactics to push through their goals. FVC claimed its workers were harassed and intimidated so they would fail to collect the correct number of signatures.
Many of the group’s forms were deemed suspicious, and some were disqualified for being fraudulent as they included signatures from deceased individuals.
The Marion County Supervisor of Elections called it “widespread fraud,” noting that even his own name, and that of his wife, appeared on questionable petitions.
Following an investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, it was determined that M.G.B. had submitted 191 of the 767 suspicious petitions.
Sixteen were confirmed to be fraudulent, with two belonging to people who had died before the listed signing date.
“This fraud is a way to run around the state’s legislative process and turn Florida’s Constitution into a playground for political gamesmanship, and it’s unacceptable,” said Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier.
Bautista is set to receive a minimum three-year prison sentence when she returns to court later this year.In April, we reported on the case of a 49-year-old woman from Lee County, Florida, who was slapped with a 10-year prison conviction for wire fraud and money laundering.