Once shady political characters are back in business in Miami-Dade elections

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Miami loves a comeback story. Today, there are two.

Political observers and civic leaders have alerted Ladra to the resurgence of two shady political operatives who seem to be back in business after somewhat of a sabbatical — forced or not.

They are Vanessa Brito, who, after several scams and a shoplifting arrest, is working hard for the Miami-Dade Democratic Party, and David Carcache Guzman, a once promising political consultant who was arrested for campaign finance charges in three Miami-Dade community council races and is now helping Commissioner Sabina Covo in Miami.

At first, Guzman told Ladra that it wasn’t him on the host committee listed for Covo’s campaign kick-off. It just says David Guzman. There’s no Carcache, which he loves. But later he admitted that his name was included without his knowledge because he’s a friend and supporter of Covo’s. “They just assumed I was hosting,” he said, insisting he was not on the host committee or working on the campaign in any way.

Read related: Sabina Covo leads Miami District 2 candidates in campaign fundraising

He works in real estate now, he says. Property management. Ladra asked him to find an apartment for someone she knows. He sent the same photo of the outside of a building, twice. A unit is available in August.

Las malas lenguas say Carcache was very present and involved in the special election that got Covo on the dais and he’s been spotted a few times at City Hall since then.

It’s understandable that he wouldn’t want his name or past connected to the candidate. Arrested in 2015, Carcache Guzman pled guilty the next year to three elections-related third degree felonies and five counts of falsifying records, a first degree misdemeanor, according to a December 2016 memo from then Inspector General Mary Cagle.

“The Miami-Dade County Elections Department contacted the OIG in July 2014 when it learned of certain irregularities related to the unauthorized use of a Kendall resident’s home address. The resulting joint OIG and SAO investigation uncovered that Carcache had solicited three unqualified individuals for seats in Community Councils 11 and 12. Carcache was attempting to install his chosen candidates in order to bolster his own lobbying and consulting business.”

Additionally, the three candidates did not even live in the areas they sought to represent.

“Carcache controlled the candidates’ qualification process by filing false and fraudulent documents with the Elections Department, and through creating and controlling the candidates’ email accounts. He also submitted fraudulent campaign treasurer finance reports on their behalf,” the memo states.

“Two of the three fake candidates actually won their elections, but because of the criminal investigation they resigned from their seats. The third candidate withdrew his candidacy in the midst of the investigation prior to the election.”

Read related: Nervous in first Miami Commission meeting, Sabina Covo froze on Pledge

Carcache was sentenced to two years of house arrest followed by three years of probation. He was required to pay investigative costs to the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) and the State Attorney’s Office (SAO). And he was prohibited from having any involvement with political campaigns and charitable organizations while serving his sentence.

That time has passed. He can be involved again. And he likes Covo.

The other boomerang is Vanessa Brito, the gypsy con artist who siempre queda mal and was accused last year of retrieving $30,000 in GoFundMe donations that were supposed to go to an attorney representing Floridians with COVID-era unemployment issues.

“She basically stole all the money from the GoFundMe,” said Scott Behren, the attorney who sued her in Broward County Court to try to collect. Behren told Ladra months ago that he still hadn’t gotten paid and would start to go after her assets. Maybe that’s why, as she says, she’s only volunteering now.

Brito also told Ladra that she had paid Behren all but $9,000 and had submitted the paperwork to the court. But that is not what the Broward County court records show in the case details. The final judgement was issued in default in October — she probably didn’t even show up — for $29,000. The court added $2,624.00 in legal fees for a final judgment in the amount of $31,624.00.

The last document recorded in the case file is an order of contempt against Brito in February after 31 “requests to produce” income tax returns and other documents.

Since 2020, Brito has made a name for herself helping guide others through the over-complicated, COVID-era unemployment system in Florida as well as other pandemic resources. She’s good at fighting. It has gotten her a larger, statewide audience on her social media — and some good publicity in mainstream media.

“Citizen activist Vanessa Brito has helped thousands of Floridians get the unemployment benefits they are owed,” reported First Coast News. “You may recognize her from First Coast News Facebook group Navigating Florida’s Unemployment Maze where she is our official unemployment expert and an irreplaceable resource for people trapped in the system.”

Read related: Vanessa Brito back again to beat the drum for Penelas and Carollo recall

Well, even if she did take the money and run, Ladra is certain — based on Brito’s Facebook comments — that she helped some people. She swears she didn’t profit personally.

Brito made her political chops helping car mogul Norman Braman with the historic — and easy peasy — recall of former Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Alvarez and the recall of former Commissioner Natasha Milian in 2011. First Coast News said she led the effort, but that’s probably what she told them. That was 2011. And everyone forgets she failed at more recalls than she succeeded. Just ask Braman if he’ll work with her again.

Since then, it’s all been downhill. A defamation lawsuit, a trespassing arrest, a shoplifting arrest at Target where she was swiping clothes instead of votes. Multiple moves. Homelessness. But always snapping right back like a boomerang. It’s practically inspirational. The last time she was spotted doing local politics was 2020 when she helped former Mayor Alex Penelas in his failed attempt to come back to the county top seat and quietly promoted the recall effort against Miami Commissioner Joe Carollo.

Then, late last year, Brito worked her way into the Miami-Dade Democratic Party’s executive committee and started leading a local Democrat Club. Chairman Robert Dempster said some members had expressed concerns, due to her past involvement in shady shit. But he said he can’t block people who want to get involved and has to give everybody the same opportunity.

She isn’t, however, doing any fundraising, he said.

More recently, Brito — who seems less arrogant and more real since her mother died last year — was made outreach chair of the Miami-Dade Dems Senior Caucus. That’s a good fit for her. Outreach. Not senior. Even if the announcement was a bit much.

“When did she become a doctor,” someone asked Ladra, referring to the posts on Facebook.

Brito said she’s done all the work but the dissertation and that she doesn’t officially have a PhD. She also said it was not her decision to use the title and she actually doesn’t like it when people do. But she has to. Because Brito is nothing if not a shameless and brilliant self promoter.

It’s an unpaid, volunteer position and she is nowhere near any purses strings, said Senior Caucus Chair Phyllis Harris, who was very impressed with Brito.

“She’s really smart. And her work ethic is crazy, especially for someone who is not getting paid,” Harris told Ladra.

Then Harris added an unintentional warning: “She’s all over the place.”

  Sabina Covo, Vanessa Brito