MARCO ISLAND, Fla. — A former Marco Island councilman was found guilty of fraudulent use of personal information but not guilty of forgery following a trial over his alleged manipulation of a 2019 condo board election.
Victor Rios was found guilty of three counts of personal information fraud and cleared of two counts of forging public records.
The city says the investigation began after the Belize Condominium Association election back on March 22, 2019.
The city says after election results were announced, "it appeared that several residents who were purported to have voted in the election did not vote, and their signatures on the outer-ballot envelopes were forgeries,"
The City of Marco Island says one person living in Marco Island filed a complaint with the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulations, Division of Florida Condominiums, Timeshares, and Mobile Homes, accusing Rios of committing election fraud in order to remain president of the board. An investigation was launched.
It found that several people in Marco Island had ballots cast in their names, which they didn't authorize and were unaware of.
The city says ballot envelopes included personal identification information of the victims such as names, condo numbers, and forged signatures. State lab workers were able to match the DNA on the envelopes to Rios.
Rios was elected back in 2014 but resigned in 2020.
Months later he was charged with fraud for fabricating votes to remain on the condo board.
