Fiore speaks out after federal court appearance on wire fraud charges
Pahrump Justice of the Peace and former Las Vegas City Councilwoman Michele Fiore pleaded not guilty on Friday to wire fraud and conspiracy charges, days after facing a federal indictment.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Daniel Albregts did not set bail for Fiore, and ordered her released on her own recognizance after she entered her plea to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and four counts of wire fraud. Federal prosecutor Dahoud Askar told the judge that the government was not asking for Fiore to be detained.
Fiore gave a brief statement to reporters following the hearing, in which she characterized the indictment as another one of the “continuous attacks” she claimed to have faced over the past decade.
“An indictment is merely an accusation, an allegation,” she said. “And these allegations are repugnant.”
Both Fiore and her defense attorney, Michael Sanft, said they want a speedy trial. Albregts set a trial date for Sept. 24.
“All will be revealed in a court of law,” Fiore said. “There will be no continuances. We want this now, and we want it over. I will not give up my right to a speedy trial and my day in court. No weapon formed against me will ever prosper.”
Federal prosecutors have accused Fiore, 53, of raising more than $70,000 for a statue in memory of an officer killed in the line of duty, and then spending the money on herself. The indictment filed Tuesday accused her of fraudulently raising the money during her time as a Las Vegas city councilwoman.
The statue was of Metropolitan Police Department officer Alyn Beck, who was fatally shot in 2014 with his partner, Igor Soldo. Fiore had proposed building a statue for Beck at the Officer Alyn Beck Memorial Park, and then used the project to raise money through a charity and political action committee, according to the indictment.
She told donors the money would go toward the statue or another memorial project, even though an unnamed company had already agreed to fund the statue.
The indictment accused Fiore of using the money to pay for personal expenses such as political fundraising bills and a payment on her daughter’s wedding, according to the indictment.
Askar said Friday that prosecutors are in the process of producing evidence to provide to Fiore’s defense, but there could be a brief delay due to a massive, global tech outage on Friday morning. Otherwise, the discovery process should be straightforward, Askar said during Friday’s hearing.
“This is not a complex case,” he said.
Fiore, who previously served as a Nevada GOP national committeewoman, was on the City Council from 2017 to 2022, and is currently a justice of the peace in Pahrump. Fiore also served in the Nevada Legislature from 2012 to 2016, and has garnered national media attention during her time in the public eye.
In January 2021, the FBI raided Fiore’s home in northwest Las Vegas. Federal agents then proceeded to issue multiple subpoenas for Fiore’s campaign finances, the Las Vegas Review-Journal has previously reported.
State law calls for the Commission on Judicial Discipline to suspend a judge who is indicted on a felony charge. Commission staff have said this week that they were aware of the indictment, but declined further comment.
Following her statement to reporters, Fiore said it is “absolutely” a possibility that the commission could suspend her.
“Whatever they recommend, we will obey,” she said.
Fiore repeatedly declined to answer when reporters asked if she had taken the money raised for the memorial, at one point stating that she had to be “very cautious” about what she said in an open case.
“Are you liking your job?” she asked broadcast reporters.
“I like my job,” said Cristen Drummond with KSNV-TV, Channel 3.
“Good. Keep it,” Fiore said.
Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240.