Former North Miami Beach Commissioner Pierre pleads guilty but avoids prison time
Former North Miami Beach Commissioner Frantz Pierre pleaded guilty Tuesday to 11 felony counts, including bribery, grand theft and money laundering in connection with shaking down a strip club operator in exchange for votes and pocketing money from a school program that did not exist.
Pierre will serve two years of house arrest with GPS monitoring, followed by four years of probation, according to the terms of a plea agreement obtained by the Miami Herald. He also must pay $2,000 in restitution to the city of North Miami Beach and $5,000 to the State Attorney’s Office, and serve 200 hours of community service.
The ex-commissioner pleaded guilty to seven counts of money laundering over $300 but under $20,000, a third-degree felony. He also admitted to single counts of bribery, unlawful compensation for official behavior, an organized scheme to defraud, and grand theft.
“Every citizen rightfully expects their elected officials to work in the best interests of the community. Former Commissioner Frantz Pierre’s crime was that he chose to make his elected office profitable for himself,” Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said in a statement. “Neither I nor the skilled investigators of my Public Corruption Task Force will ever allow that to happen.”
Prosecutors said Pierre shook down the operator of a North Miami Beach strip club, Dean’s Gold, for thousands of dollars in exchange for votes to allow the club to sell alcohol for extended hours until 6 a.m.
Pierre texted the club’s owner saying he had been in a car wreck and needed a $7,000 loan, investigators said. When told the check was in the mail, Frantz texted back, saying, “Thank you so much. That will not be forgotten.”
The club’s owner sent Pierre three additional checks totaling $5,500. In exchange for the cash, prosecutors said Pierre cast votes in favor of extending the club’s liquor license an extra two hours.
Prosecutors also said Pierre created an elaborate