ORLANDO, Fla. – A Florida representative for west Orange County and Osceola County was arrested Thursday on felony forgery charges after being indicted by a grand jury.
Orange County Jail records show State Rep. Carolina Amesty, R-Windermere, was booked into the jail. A report says Amesty turned herself in, with a bond set at $20,000. She left the jail Thursday afternoon.
The 29-year-old has been under investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement ever since an Orlando Sentinel probe into Amesty and the school she runs with her family, Central Christian University. In one of the stories, Amesty was accused of notarizing and signing an employment form for a University of Florida teacher whom the school claimed was on its staff. It was part of the school’s application for state licensing with the Florida Department of Education.
But the teacher said he never worked at the school and never signed the form.
The Orange-Osceola state attorney’s office says it asked for an FDLE investigation after a concerned citizen brought it to the office’s attention. The state attorney’s office accuses Amesty of knowingly notarizing the document with a forged signature in 2021.
“That information was presented to the grand jury who found sufficient evidence to return an indictment. I am committed to upholding fairness and justice in every case by applying the law equally to everyone and my record reflects this dedication,” said State Attorney Andrew Bain in a statement.
Amesty is facing charges of forgery, uttering forgery, false acknowledgment or certification by a notary public, and notarizing one’s own signature, all third-degree felony charges. The FDLE has not commented on her case yet.
Amesty’s campaign released a statement to News 6, saying:
“This prosecution, initiated just a few weeks prior to absentee ballots being dropped, is based on misleading reports from a partisan newspaper about a notarization of an employee verification background report, the truth of the contents which have not been questioned in any manner. Rep. Amesty calls for a speedy trial, looks forward to her day in court, and is confident of her public vindication.”
Amesty campaign
Amesty was elected to represent Florida House District 45 in 2022 and is running for reelection this year. The district includes the area of West Orange County along the State Road 429 corridor from State Road 50 to I-4, including Horizon West, Windermere, Winter Garden, and the western edge of Osceola County into Poinciana and Davenport.
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