Suspended Miami commissioner pleads not guilty to bribery and corruption charges
A defense attorney for suspended Miami Commissioner Alex Diaz de la Portilla entered a not guilty plea in court Friday to charges that veteran politician sold his vote in exchange for $245,000 in campaign contributions and gifts.
The commissioner, removed from office by Gov. Ron DeSantis last month after his arrest, didn’t attend the brief hearing before Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Christine Bandin. His attorney Ben Kuehne said Diaz de la Portilla was busy campaigning for the Nov. 7 election to retain the seat the governor had taken away from him.
“Today, Alex told Judge Bandin he is not guilty of any of these charges,” Kuehne said outside courtroom 3-4 at the Miami-Dade criminal courthouse. “We look forward to a vindication of these charges because Alex is not guilty.”
Just a few moments earlier Friday in a separate courtroom, attorney and lobbyist William Riley Jr., pleaded not guilty to a handful of similar charges. Like the suspended commissioner, Riley didn’t appear in court. Riley is accused of being the front for the business entity that allegedly gave Diaz de la Portilla campaign money in exchange for the right to build a sports facility on land that is now a city park in downown Miami.
Both men bonded out of jail after their arrests last month and the two will have their next status hearing together on Nov. 14. No date has yet been set for trial.
Specifically, Diaz de la Portilla is facing one count of money laundering; three counts of unlawful compensation or reward for official behavior; one count of bribery; one count of criminal conspiracy; four counts of official misconduct; one count of campaign contributions in excess of legal limits, and two counts of failure to report a gift.
Díaz de la Portilla, 59, who was elected to the city commission in 2019, is a former state legislator with a decades-long political career.
Riley, accused of paying off Diaz de la Portilla on behalf of the owners of a Miami private school called Centner Academy, which proposed the sports facility, has been charged with a single count of money laundering, three counts of unlawful compensation or reward for official behavior, one count of bribery and one count of criminal conspiracy.
According to Broward prosecutors — who took over the investigation two years ago when the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office noted a conflict with Riley’s family members — contend Diaz de la Portilla exchanged his vote for almost a quarter million in not only campaign contributions, but for gifts, a lengthy stay at a fancy hotel and meals.
They also say he broke campaign finance laws that prohibit co-ordination between campaigns and Political Action Committees. And they say he accepted bribes from Riley who was working on behalf of the Centners to secure the right to build the athletic complex for their private school.
This story was originally published October 13, 2023 at 12:01 PM.
