Kissimmee mayor Jackie Espinosa has been arrested in Florida and charged with grand theft and an organised scheme to defraud over allegations linked to a city Covid-19 relief grant programme.
State investigators allege that Espinosa and members of her immediate family applied for a combined $50,000 through the Business Boost 2.0 scheme, which was funded with American Rescue Plan money intended to help small businesses recover from the pandemic.
Espinosa was booked into Osceola County Jail on Wednesday, according to local authorities. The warrant accuses her of grand theft involving between $20,000 and $100,000, and organised fraud involving property valued at $50,000 or more.
Prosecutors allege that the mayor helped create and expand the grant programme before applying for money alongside relatives for three businesses they owned or controlled. The applications were submitted when the scheme opened in September 2025, with the grants deposited into accounts linked to the family in November, investigators said.
The Florida Attorney General’s Office said Espinosa was warned by the city attorney in December 2025 that accepting the funds created a prohibited conflict of interest and that she should return the money. Investigators allege that she declined to do so and took no corrective action.
The case follows separate city and state ethics investigations. A court-appointed special prosecutor previously found probable cause to pursue impeachment proceedings, alleging that Espinosa had participated in official decisions affecting the grant programme without disclosing her financial interests.
An attempt to advance the impeachment process stalled in August after Kissimmee city commissioners were split 2-2. The Florida Commission on Ethics later found probable cause in relation to allegations that businesses connected to Espinosa and her family had received grants through the scheme.
Espinosa’s lawyer, Migdalia Perez, said the mayor maintained her innocence. She argued that the programme was publicly approved and administered by city staff, and that prosecutors would have to prove criminal intent rather than relying solely on an alleged ethics breach.
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the state Department of Financial Services’ criminal investigations division jointly investigated the allegations. The case is due to be prosecuted by the Office of Statewide Prosecution’s Public Integrity Unit.
