Commissioner Alonso held on charges of corruption

  BY KARL ROSS

  Charged with exploiting her office and stealing money from her campaign coffers, Miami-Dade Commissioner Miriam Alonso turned herself in to police early
  Monday along with her husband Leonel, who is accused of theft and money laundering.

  Alonso's former chief of staff, Elba Morales, was also arrested Monday in connection with the case against the Alonsos. It was Morales' second arrest in
  two weeks as a result of the 15-month-long corruption probe.

  ''Today is a dark day in Miami-Dade County politics,'' Miami-Dade Inspector General Christopher Mazzella said. ``It's another one of those unfortunate
  incidents that seems to have been plaguing this county in recent years.''

  Prosecutors said that, if convicted, Alonso could receive up to 15 years in prison, while husband Leonel, her campaign treasurer, faces 50 years and
  Morales as many as 90 years as a result of the latest charges.

  Attorneys for the Alonsos and Morales denied wrongdoing on the part of their clients and say they are preparing to fight the charges in court.

  ''It's very sad, very humiliating for her to go through something like this,'' José Quiñon, attorney for the Alonsos, said as he awaited the commissioner's
  release from the Turner Guilford Knight correctional facility.

  The commissioner was released on $17,500 bond, and her husband was released on $35,000 bond, which had been reduced from $287,500.

  Alonso's arrest marks the fourth time in the past five years that a sitting county commissioner has been charged with a crime.

  It will almost certainly lead to her suspension from office by Gov. Jeb Bush. The governor said he will meet with his general counsel, Charles Canady, to
  discuss the case.

  Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernández Rundle said she hoped the ''aggressive'' investigation by Miami-Dade police with agents from the county
  inspector general's office and the state attorney's office sends a message to elected officials.

  ''And that is that we're just not going to tolerate this stealing from the public and the undermining of the public's confidence in government,'' she said.

  Miami-Dade Mayor Alex Penelas called the arrests a setback for trust in county government. He added: ``It's a sad day for all of us, particularly a sad and
  difficult day for Miriam and her family.''

  The charges against the Alonsos and Morales stem from two criminal cases that were filed separately Monday. Prosecutors said additional charges could
  be filed at a later date, but didn't elaborate.

  The first case involves a former Alonso commission aide, José Marrero, who spent what an affidavit filed by the prosecution called ''a vast amount of his
  regularly scheduled work hours'' overseeing the couple's rental properties, carrying out personal errands and working on her 1998 reelection campaign.

  Marrero told investigators Leonel Alonso ordered him to shuttle campaign workers around his wife's commission district to distribute campaign material
  and talk to voters.

  ''He even suggested Mr. Marrero disguise himself when engaging in this activity by wearing a hat and dark glasses,'' said the arrest affidavit prepared by
  police Detective Antonio Rodríguez.

  Commissioner Alonso was charged with grand theft, unlawful compensation and exploitation of her official position in that case. Husband Leonel was also
  charged with grand theft.

  The Alonso's attorney Quiñon promptly assailed Marrero's credibility.

  ''The centerpiece of their investigation is an individual who has had three prior convictions and is a disgruntled employee on top of that,'' Quiñon said.

  Court records show Marrero has faced criminal charges on three prior occasions: for cocaine possession in 1985, unemployment fraud in 1987, and
  making a false statement in 1999 as a result of the 1997 Miami election scandal. Adjudication was withheld in all cases, even though Marrero served
  probation in each instance.

  Ed Griffith, a spokesman for the state attorney's office, said the arrest affidavit cites ''a redundancy of witnesses'' to corroborate Marrero's allegations.

  These include several laborers Marrero allegedly drove to job sites to work on the Alonsos' rental units and two contractors, one of whom, Isaiah Alvarez,
  recalled Marrero driving ``what appeared to be a Miami-Dade County vehicle.''

  Alvarez said he saw Alonso at a job site with Marrero on one occasion and, on several others, saw Marrero with her husband, the affidavit states.

  Marrero did not respond to a request for comment about Quiñon's remarks.

  The second case filed Monday details $54,000 in expenditures from Alonso's 1998 reelection campaign that prosecutors say the Alonsos and Morales
  converted to personal use. These include $34,700 allegedly laundered through a Doral-area print shop and more than $12,000 in bogus checks to
  campaign workers, an affidavit states.

  Commissioner Alonso was charged with grand theft in connection with the case. Leonel Alonso was charged with money laundering and six counts of
  grand theft. Morales was charged with money laundering, six counts of grand theft and seven counts of fabricating physical evidence.

  The charges against Morales are unrelated to the four felony counts she was charged with on April 11. Her attorney Steven Chaykin said any attempt by
  authorities to turn her against the Alonsos would prove futile.

  ''Now it's very clear that the full weight of the government's boot is on the neck of somebody many consider an excellent public servant to extract
  evidence against her employer that she does not possess,'' Chaykin said.

  The supporting affidavit identifies six incidents in which funds were allegedly stolen from Alonso's reelection campaign.

  The first cites two campaign checks worth $7,064 that were signed by Leonel Alonso and made out to Century Everglades Lumber & Building Supplies for
  alleged purchases unrelated to the campaign.

  The affidavit states some of those funds were used to buy plywood that was delivered to the homes of the Moraleses, the Alonsos and their daughter at
  about the time that Hurricane George was menacing South Florida.

  Other funds were allegedly used to purchase building materials for repairs at three of the Alonsos' rental properties.

  Interviews with Century Everglades employees revealed an unused balance from Alonso's campaign account of $3,921, which ''was probably returned in
  cash to the presenter of the checks,'' the affidavit states.

  The largest theft charge involves payments of $77,666 to MC Printing in Doral. Of that, $42,966 was spent on campaign posters and other advertising
  material, the affidavit states.

  Shortly after Alonso was reelected by a landslide on Sept. 1, 1998, Morales allegedly gave a white envelope to an MC Printing employee to settle the
  balance. The envelope contained three checks, all signed by Leonel Alonso.

  The affidavit states that MC Printing employees were surprised to find one check for $20,466 -- the amount of the balance -- along with two others
  totaling $34,700. It says MC owner Rafael Chapman called Morales to ask her about the extra checks.

  Morales told him to use the overpayment as credit to buy ''Thank You'' cards for those who assisted Alonso's campaign, but no cards or other materials
  were ever ordered. Later, Morales demanded the balance -- paid in cash, the affidavit states.

  Concerned a single withdrawal would raise suspicion, Chapman issued five company checks in the name of a secretary who cashed them for Morales.
  They totaled $32,444 -- the company kept $2,256 to cover sales taxes since it had already declared the additional payments as revenue, the affidavit
  states. Prosecutors say neither Chapman nor other MC Printing employees will face charges.

  At about the time investigators requested documents from MC Printing in September 2001, Morales returned to request ''bogus invoices'' for the full
  $34,700 to justify the overpayments, the affidavit states. She ''insisted that the invoices were for accounting purposes,'' according to the affidavit.

  Lastly, the affidavit details 16 checks made out to four individuals who were allegedly used as fronts to divert money from the campaign. These include
  checks to Marrero, his wife Ursula, their daughter Ana Labella and to Rosario Clauze, a campaign worker.

  The affidavit states that Marrero, acting on orders, forged his wife's signature on checks totaling $7,640, cashed them and returned the proceeds to
  either Morales or Leonel Alonso, the campaign treasurer. The affidavit states Ursula never worked on the campaign, even though the checks were made
  out to her for campaign-related expenses.

  In the case of the Marreros' daughter, the affidavit states Labella ''reluctantly'' signed a check for $3,000 at her father's request ``and returned the cash
  to him with the understanding it would be handed back to the Alonsos.''

  Herald staff writers Oscar Corral, Carolyn Salazar, Lesley Clark and Herald researcher Elisabeth Donovan contributed to this report.