“It is clear that the jury understood the State’s evidence which is complex in this public corruption prosecution and determined that Frank Artiles was not only the mastermind of the “ghost candidate” candidate scandal but violated Florida’s campaign finance and election laws in order to do it.

These 3rd-degree felony convictions show that the jurors agreed that we cannot tolerate the violation of our laws just to gain a political advantage. They weighed all the evidence, heard all the testimony, and decided that Frank Artiles was guilty.

I applaud the talented prosecutorial team of Deputy Chief Assistant State Attorney Tim VanderGiesen and Assistant State Attorney William Gonzalez for effectively bringing forth the essential case elements that led to this verdict.”