Election Fraud Cases

Volvy "Zev" Smilowitz

Volvy Smilowitz, along with Kenneth Nakdiem and Shalom Lamm, conspired to falsely register non-residents to vote in the 2014 village election in Bloomingburg, with the goal of electing board members who would favor their planned housing develoment project. They also bribed some non-residents to vote. To cover their tracks, the cabal created fake leases and decorated apartments to look like people lived in them. Smilowitz pleaded guilty to conspiring to corrupt the electoral process and was sentenced to three months' imprisonment followed by one year of supervised release, as well as a $2,500 fine.

Source: https://herit.ag/3rDeJmP

Ana Matias

Ana Matias, of Columbus, pled guilty to False Voter Registration in violation of Section 3599.11 of the Ohio Revised Code, a Felony in the Fifth degree. Matias was charged with three counts of false election registration and two counts of illegal voting, and pleaded guilty to false voter registration. She was sentenced to community control (probation) for two years and was ordered to pay $423 in court fees.

Source: https://herit.ag/3l9XMPE, Case no. 17 CR 005017

Janitha Rippey

Janitha Rippey, of Columbus, pled guilty to False Voter Registration in violation of Section 3599.11 of the Ohio Revised Code, a Felony in the Fifth degree. Rippey was charged with one count of false election registration and one count of illegal voting, and pleaded guilty to false voter registration. She was sentenced to community control (probation) for twelve months and was ordered to pay a $250 fine.

Source: https://herit.ag/3l2KfJW , Case no. 17 CR 005019

Gilbert A. Brown

Gilbert A. Brown, of Columbus, pled guilty to False Voter Registration in violation of Section 3599.11 of the Ohio Revised Code, a Felony in the Fifth degree. Brown was charged with one count of false election registration and one count of illegal voting, and pleaded guilty to false voter registration. He was sentenced to community control (probation) for twelve months.

Source: https://herit.ag/3y9XxIi, Case no.17 CR 005023

Jeffrey Hartman

Jeffrey Hartman, a resident of Westminster, Maryland, illegally registered to vote in both Maryland and Morgan County, West Virginia, and cast ballots in both states nine times since 2006. Hartman pleaded guilty in West Virginia to illegal voting and was given a suspended 30-day jail sentence, was put on probation for one year, and ordered to pay a $100 fine and court costs.

Source: https://herit.ag/37508HC

Sam Fant

Sam Fant, a former Manteca Unified School District Trustee, pleaded no contest to a felony voter registration fraud charge. During the 2014 election, Fant provided false addresses to two Manteca school board candidates, Ashley Drain and Alexander Bronson, so they could run despite not meeting residency requirements. Both candidates won, but were ultimately forced to resign and were criminally convicted on election fraud charges. Fant, meanwhile, was sentenced to serve 120 days in county jail and was given five years of probation.

Source: bit.ly/2jMIz9B, bit.ly/2hSSo5w

Alexander Bronson

Alexander Bronson, former Trustee for Manteca Unified School District, California, pleaded guilty to charges of voter fraud. He listed a false address in order to qualify for candidacy in the November 2014 Manteca Unified School District Board of Education election. He resigned from office and is awaiting sentencing.

Source: https://herit.ag/3zLTLoV , https://herit.ag/3jDMv8T

Ashley Drain Hampton

Ashley Drain Hampton falsified her address in order to appear on the ballot for the Manteca Unified school board elections in 2014. Hampton won her race, but resigned several months after charges were filed. In April 2017, a jury found Hampton guilty of charges that included not only multiple counts of election fraud, but also charges of perjury and defrauding the government in an effort to get more public assistance money than she was entitled to receive. In September of 2018, a judge sentenced Hampton to 15 months in jail, five years of probation, and ordered her to complete 200 hours of community service.

Source: https://herit.ag/3vKgOj8, https://herit.ag/3bcrVrz, https://herit.ag/3BWXVMC

Alba Esperanza Fernandez

Alba Fernandez successfully registered to vote using the name Bunny Kohn, a false name. Fernandez voted under the false alias three times by absentee ballot in 2016. She also voted three times under her legal name, once in-person and twice by absentee ballot. She pleaded no contest to three counts of casting more than one ballot in an election and one count of submitting false voter registration information, which are all felony charges. Fernandez was sentenced to 4 years of probation and fined $518.

Source: bit.ly/32HyUI9 , bit.ly/3etHUTM , bit.ly/3ExHpm7

Tomika Curgil

While working for People United for Medical Marijuana, Tomika Curgil submitted at least 15 fake voter registrations - using both fake names and names of the deceased - and five voter registrations which she filled out without the voters' consent. When investigators surveilled Curgil during a registration campaign day, she did not leave her house; however, she still submitted several absentee ballots. She was found guilty and given probation.

Source: bit.ly/2pRIEbx, hrld.us/2J4JWc6

Jerome Kesler

Jerome "J.D." Kesler was living in Illinois from 2010 to 2014, but continued to vote from an Indiana address. Following an investigation by the Indiana State Police, he was charged with two class D felonies for voting outside his precinct of residence. In November of 2017, he entered into a plea deal of a one-year suspended jail sentence and informal probation.

Source: https://herit.ag/3iRXQkn, https://herit.ag/3BGBfjz

Kevin Kunlay Williams (a.k.a. Kunlay Sodipo)

Kevin Williams, a Nigerian citizen and an illegal immigrant, voted in both the 2012 and 2016 elections illegally in St. Louis, Missouri and also committed tax refund fraud in the amount of $12 million from a scheme using stolen school public employee IDs, among other nefarious actions. He had been deported in 1995 but illegally reentered into the United States in 1999. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 6 _ years (78 months) in prison for voting fraudulently and other crimes including mail fraud, aggravated identity theft, and illegally re-entering the United States. In addition to his prison sentence, he was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $889,712 to the Internal Revenue Service. He also faces deportation.

Source: https://herit.ag/3zFewCz, https://herit.ag/3x2hJKM

Don Leeman

Don Leeman, a former state Representative, was charged with bribery and witness tampering charges. The charges were filed after an investigation into the location of Mr. Leeman's home, which was outside of the district he was representing. This is not permissible under New Hampshire law. Leeman agreed to a plea deal that only required him to plead guilty to the misdemeanor charge. He was issued a deferred $1,200 fine and was ordered to complete 200 hours of community service.

Source: https://herit.ag/372GV9l

Shalom Lamm

Shalom Lamm, a 57-year-old real estate developer, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to corrupt the election process. He had partnered with another developer, Kenneth Nakdimen, to use false voter registrations to assist in electing officials that would be favorable toward a development project of theirs. Lamm was sentenced to 10 months in prison, one year supervised release, 400 hours of community service, and a $20,000 fine.

Source: https://herit.ag/372H0d9, https://herit.ag/3BKpEjj, https://herit.ag/3f2mE8j, https://herit.ag/3iSZAtL

Kenneth Nakdimen

Shalom Lamm's co-defendant, Kenneth Nakdimen, also a real estate developer from Monsey, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to corrupt the electoral process. Nakdimen and his partners planted items in unoccupied apartments to give a semblance of occupancy to falsely registered voters. He was sentenced to six months in prison in addition to one year of supervised release, 400 hours of community service, and a $20,000 fine.

Source: https://herit.ag/3i4UQlF, https://herit.ag/3iQEe09, https://herit.ag/3l0pYEC