NORTH LAUDERDALE, Fla. – In a 287-page report released Thursday, Broward County investigators concluded that a North Lauderdale city commissioner committed campaign finance violations “before and after the November 2020 election.”
The Broward Office of the Inspector General conducted the investigation against Commissioner Regina Martin.
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The OIG report alleges that Martin and her campaign treasurer “committed numerous crimes in their knowing and willful violation” of Florida campaign finance laws.
Those allegations include accepting a cash contribution in excess of $5,000, accepting two or more contributions made in someone else’s name, both third-degree felonies, as well as accepting a contribution less than five days before the election, a misdemeanor.
Investigators said she violated the law by loaning her campaign $20,000. She’s also accused of falsifying 13 reports.
According to the report, the OIG’s office received a tip in April 2021 that, in 2020, Martin failed to report expenditures for an election night watch party at the Grand Palace Ballroom in North Lauderdale. The tipster also questioned whether she paid cash for the party.
(Read the full report below.)
Florida’s campaign finance laws strictly limit the use of cash in election campaigns, investigators wrote.
The report states that investigators substantiated the allegations and found additional violations.
Investigators wrote that Martin did not cooperate with the investigation, despite being “under a legal obligation” to do so.
Inspector General John W. Scott sent a copy of the report to North Lauderdale city officials and forwarded the findings to the Broward County State Attorney’s office and the Florida Elections Commission for “whatever action those agencies deem appropriate.”
Martin, who, according to her city biography, is also a pastor, has not been criminally charged as of Thursday.
Local 10 News contacted her Thursday afternoon seeking comment.
Full OIG report: