From the Editor: The Citrus Tea News is committed to factual, unbiased reporting. This story is based on records reviewed by The Citrus Tea News and independently verified before publication. It was not produced in coordination with any political campaign. An investigation is not an arrest, and an arrest is not a conviction. In this case, no charges were ever filed, and the State Attorney declined to prosecute. The Citrus Tea News does not editorialize on the outcome of elections and does not endorse candidates. We report what the records show, give every subject the opportunity to respond, and we let voters decide.
Victor Sims, who is running for Polk County School Board District 3 in the Nov. 3 general election, has responded publicly after records from a 2018 Polk County Sheriff’s Office investigation surfaced showing he was investigated in connection with a $20,000 check that investigators alleged was stolen from a local business and fraudulently deposited into his bank account. The State Attorney reviewed the case and declined to prosecute. No charges were ever filed.
The Citrus Tea News reviewed records that came to the publication’s attention and independently verified them before seeking comment from the candidate.
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office opened the case in March 2018 after a business owner reported that someone had attempted to deposit a $20,000 check into an account belonging to Victor Emmanuel Sims at a MidFlorida Credit Union drive-through location. The business owner told investigators he hadn’t written the check to Sims and didn’t know him. He said the check appeared to have been stolen from his briefcase or lost, as he sometimes carried blank, pre-signed business checks…