State officials said Espinosa faces grand theft and organized scheme to defraud charges, with more details expected Wednesday afternoon.
KISSIMMEE, FL — Kissimmee Mayor Jackie Espinosa was arrested Wednesday morning on charges of grand theft and organized scheme to defraud, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced, adding a criminal case to months of scrutiny surrounding the mayor and city-administered grant money.
Uthmeier announced the arrest Wednesday morning and said state officials would provide additional information at a 2 p.m. news conference in Orlando. Florida Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia and Florida Department of Law Enforcement Commissioner Larry Keefe were expected to join him. Authorities had not released detailed allegations supporting the criminal charges before the scheduled briefing.
Espinosa was taken into custody Wednesday morning in Osceola County. WFTV reported that law enforcement officers stopped her shortly after 8 a.m. as she drove away from her home and placed her in handcuffs. Other local news organizations reported that she was being taken to or booked into the Osceola County Jail.
Ingoglia said investigators from his office worked with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement on the case. He said auditors and criminal investigators had uncovered alleged misuse of taxpayer money and accused Espinosa of abusing her office for personal gain. Those allegations have not been proven in court, and Espinosa is presumed innocent unless and until she is convicted.
The arrest follows months of separate ethics and political proceedings involving Espinosa and Kissimmee’s Business Boost 2.0 program. The program distributed federal pandemic relief money to qualifying businesses. Earlier investigations focused on about $50,000 in grants received by businesses connected to Espinosa and members of her family.
In September, the Florida Commission on Ethics found probable cause to believe Espinosa had an employment or contractual relationship with an entity doing business with her agency when her business accepted grant money administered by the city. A probable-cause finding in an ethics proceeding is not a criminal conviction or a final determination that a violation occurred.
Espinosa later agreed to a proposed resolution of that ethics matter that included a public censure and reprimand and a recommended $2,000 civil penalty. She previously defended the businesses’ eligibility for the grant money and said the dispute was administrative rather than criminal. She also argued that the businesses qualified for the program and that the funding program had been established before she became mayor.
The controversy also led to an effort to remove Espinosa from office. A court-appointed special prosecutor earlier found probable cause on several allegations and recommended that Kissimmee commissioners consider impeachment proceedings. In August, commissioners divided 2-2 on moving the matter forward, leaving the proposed impeachment without the votes needed to advance.
Espinosa has served as Kissimmee’s mayor since November 2024, according to the city. Her current term is scheduled to end in 2028. As of Wednesday afternoon, the city’s website continued to list her as mayor.
State officials had not yet publicly detailed the conduct underlying the grand theft and organized scheme to defraud charges or confirmed whether the criminal case is based on the same conduct examined in the earlier grant and ethics investigations. More information was expected at the state’s Wednesday afternoon news conference.
Author note: Last updated October 21, 2026.