Ethics board: Miami’s ADLP had three ‘ghost’ employees on taxpayers’ dime

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One staffer worked on brother’s commission campaign

UPDATED: Remember Jenny Nillo? The “ghost employee” Miami City Commissioner Alex Diaz de la Portilla had on the Omni CRA payroll while she drove around picking up his booze and his dry cleaning? Well, she is not the only District 1 staffer that ran errands for the commissioner on the taxpayer’s time and dime.

According to the Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics and Public Trust, there are two other city employees, community liaisons, who were also working on non-city tasks while on the public payroll. Anabel Castillo was practically working full-time on the failed county commission campaign for ADLP’s baby brother, Renier “The Fredo” Diaz de la Portilla. And Julio Guillen was caught with other workers building a fence on the Diaz de la Portilla farm on Krome Avenue in the middle of a weekday afternoon.

Read related: Ethics board: Miami Commissioner ADLP abused his power with city car

One of the workers was photographed drinking a beer — which seems to be the beverage of choice of ADLP lackeys. Remember? Jenny Nillo drank cans of Modelo as she drove around taking care of his personal business.

Both Castillo — who also opened a real estate office — and Guillen pleaded no contest to the complaint that they had failed to submit outside employment forms for the work. The statements from the Ethics Commission indicate they both submitted the required forms for some of the time, but it did not cover the entire time of outside employment.

They both “stipulated to a finding of Probable Cause and entered into a settlement agreement for violating the Prohibition on Outside Employment and the Exploitation of Official Position Prohibited sections of the Miami-Dade County Conflict of Interest and Code of Ethics Ordinance,” reads a press release issued after Thursday’s meeting.

“A COE investigation revealed that Ms. Castillo failed to file, under oath, an annual report
indicating the source of her outside employment, the nature of the work being done, and any
amounts or type of money or other consideration received as required by the Ethics Code.
Specifically, Ms. Castillo failed to report that, in 2020 and 2021, she engaged in paid outside
employment by working for two political action committees and for the 2020 Reinier Diaz de la
Portilla Campaign for Miami-Dade County Commissioner. Furthermore, Ms. Castillo exploited her City position by using a City of Miami vehicle to transport herself to and from campaign-
related activity in the City of Miami Beach.

“Under the terms of the settlement agreement, Ms. Castillo will be issued a Letter of Instruction
and will be required to pay a fine in the amount of $1,500.”

Ladra will bet that both Castillo and Guillen told investigators the commissioner had no idea that they were working outside the city during office hours. Yeah, right. Alex Diaz de la Portilla ran his brother’s campaign. Neither of those two — none of the three — would do anything without his direct approval.

The investigation began after a city of Miami vehicle was spotted at a senior center in Miami Beach during Baby DLP’s 2020 campaign for county commission in District 5. Campaigning was prohibited at these centers, but apparently the DLP campaign got a heads up from someone at Seniors In Action.

Read related: Jenny Nillo campaigned for Renier Diaz de la Portilla while on the public job

Turned out to be the car assigned by the commissioner to Castillo, who likely used the city car to campaign for Renier on other dates and at other places. Nillo already admitted to working on the campaign, picking up and/or dropping off campaign checks. Last year, the Ethics Commission found probably cause that Diaz de la Portilla had abused his power with the use of his city car.

Two city paid campaign workers and Baby DLP still couldn’t pull it off, losing with 48% of the vote. Maybe there was too much beer.

The Ethics Commission fined Castillo $1,500 and Guillen $500.

And that’s it? They don’t get charged criminally for theft for stealing their wages, taxpayer dollars, during the time they were not working? Nothing at all happens to The Dean?

Both Castillo and Guillen were hired Dec. 2, 2019 as community liaisons making $50,000 a year, according to city records. Guillen makes $63,000 a year now. Castillo was making $63,000 annually before she was fired in May of last year. Nillo, who was hired by the city as ADLP’s district office coordinator after she was fired from the CRA, is making at least $55,000.

We know the State Attorney’s Office is loathe to investigate anything political, lest her political friends decide to turn their backs. But Ladra keeps hearing there are Florida Department of Law Enforcement and FBI investigators looking into some of the Miami District 1 shenanigans.

Ladra is certain that ghost employees is just the tip of the iceberg.

 

 

 

 

  Alex Diaz de la Portilla, Ethics Commission, Jenny Nillo