https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/07/18/michele-fiore-
neveda-fallen-officer-funds-daughters-wedding-indictment/74453893007/

An ex Las Vegas councilwoman, former assembly member and current Nevada
judge has been federally charged in connection with an alleged charity
fraud scheme in which prosecutors say she pocketed more than $70,000 in
donations intended to honor fallen officers.

Michele Fiore, 53, is charged with four counts of wire fraud and one count
of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, The U.S. Justice Department announced
Wednesday.

According to the indictment handed down on Tuesday in Las Vegas, Fiore,
who lives in the town of Pahrump, "solicited donations to build a statue
honoring Las Vegas police officers" killed in the line of duty as a then-
Las Vegas city councilwoman.

Pahrump is a small town not far from the California state line, at the
southernmost tip of Nye County where Fiore is a justice of the peace.

Fiore is "a conservative firebrand and fervent gun-rights advocate who
published a calendar of herself pictured with various high-powered
firearms", the Reno Gazette Journal, part of the USA TODAY Network
reported. As an assemblywoman in 2015 she introduced a campus carry bill
that would have allowed concealed carry permit holders to have guns on
college campuses, at K-12 schools and at day care facilities.

Ex Las Vegas Councilwomen Michele Fiore talks with the RGJ in 2022. Fiore
was federally indicted in July 2024 after being charged in connection to �
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ANDY BARRON / RENO GAZETTE JOURNAL
Funds raised were to create statue to honor fallen officers
Fiore allegedly promised donors �100% of the contributions� would be used
to create the statue, the indictment alleges.

But prosecutors said Fiore did not use the tens of thousands of dollars in
charitable donations for the statue of the fallen officer and instead
converted the money to her personal use.

"The donations were used to pay her political fundraising bills and rent
and were transferred to family members, including to pay for her
daughter�s wedding," officials wrote in the release.

Federal court papers obtained by USA TODAY show Fiore is represented by
Las Vegas-based attorney George P. Kelesis and was slated to enter a plea
on the charges Friday.

USA TODAY has reached out to Kelesis.

'A horrific scene': Triple decapitation: Man accused of killing parents,
family dog in California

Michele Fiore faces up to 20 years in prison on each felony count
The FBI Las Vegas Field Office is investigating the case which remained
open Thursday, officials said.

If convicted, she faces a maximum of 20 years in prison on each criminal
felony count.

Contributing: Jeffrey Meehan with the Reno Gazette Journal.

Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at
nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund.

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