Matt Gaetz's wingman bragged about plot to 'control' sheriff's office: report

Darryl Sheppard ran for sheriff of Florida's Orange County in 2018, but almost had to withdraw from the race because he didn't have enough money to pay the nearly $11,000 qualifying fee. But he saved his candidacy after loaning himself enough money to make the ballot. While he didn't win the race, he came within just 5 percentage points of current Orange County Sheriff John Mina.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, Sheppard had help from Joel Greenberg, the former Republican tax collector in Seminole County who recently pleaded guilty to federal crimes including public corruption to sex trafficking — and is now cooperating with investigators in a probe that has swept up Florida GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz.

The Sentinel reports that Greenberg told others he was orchestrating Sheppard's campaign. One associate of Greenberg said that he was using Sheppard to gain "control" of the Orange County Sheriff's Office. Greenberg also fired off a now-deleted tweet where he told the chairman of the Orange County Democratic Party, "I will own your [sheriff's office]."

"In an interview, Sheppard said Greenberg helped his campaign by providing advice and recommending others who could help. But he said he has no idea why Greenberg would claim to have control over him," the Sentinel reports. "Sheppard said Greenberg never provided any financial support beyond a pair of small campaign contributions."

Read the full report over at the Orlando Sentinel.