Imagine another version of Pete Buttigieg.
Jasiel F. Correia II had all the makings of a rising Democratic star.
While still an undergraduate at Providence College, he was appointed to a seat on the city council in his hometown of Fall River, Massachusetts, in 2013, and began attending meetings in between his political science classes. Fall River had been abandoned long ago by textile manufacturers, leaving behind empty mills and crumbling smokestacks that most people speed by on their way to Cape Cod. Highlighting his own experience as the founder of a tech start-up, Correia made the case that he could convince young people to relocate to the city and start businesses there. At 23, he beat out a better-funded incumbent to become the city’s youngest-ever mayor.
Then, early Thursday morning, Correia was arrested by federal agents on charges that he stole almost a quarter of a million dollars from seven people who had invested in his start-up, and spent the money on adult entertainment, airfare, a dating service, designer clothes, hotels, jewelry, trips to casinos, and a Mercedes-Benz. Hours later, he pleaded not guilty to 13 counts of wire and tax fraud.
Read the full story from Front Page Mag
Want more BFT? Leave us a voicemail on our page or follow us on Twitter @BFT_Podcast and Facebook @BluntForceTruthPodcast. We want to hear from you! There’s no better place to get the #BluntForceTruth.
