State Representative Carolina Amesty of Florida's House District 45, serving west Orange County and Osceola County, turned herself into the Orange County Jail on felony forgery charges Thursday. According to ClickOrlando, the 29-year-old Republican lawmaker faced a set bond of $20,000 after her surrender. Amesty's booking is the culmination of an investigation sparked by an Orlando Sentinel exploration into purported misconduct involving Central Christian University, a school Amesty runs with her family.
The probe highlighted an incident where Amesty was accused of having not only notarized her signature but also falsely claimed a University of Florida teacher was on the staff of her family's school. This teacher has since refuted the claim, denying any association with Central Christian University. Amesty is now confronted with multiple felony charges including forgery and uttering forgery, as per Spectrum News, although her counsel has yet to publicly address the allegations.
Amesty's arrest injects a disquieting note into her political career, as she is currently navigating her first term as a state representative. Her district boundaries encompass a wide swath of Central Florida, stretching from State Road 50 to just south of Interstate 4, including communities like Horizon West, Windermere, and Winter Garden, all the way to the Western edge of Osceola County.
Notably, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement has yet to issue formal commentary regarding the developments in Amesty's case.
