Former Miami City Commissioner Sabina Covo, on Oct. 12, 2023.
Jose A. Iglesias
jiglesias@elnuevoherald.com
Former Miami City Commissioner Sabina Covo has been cleared in a bribery investigation that probed whether she offered political opponents jobs with the city in exchange for their endorsements in the 2023 election.
The investigation centered on events surrounding the November 2023 election for the city’s District 2 seat. Covo, the incumbent, had placed first in the general election but failed to secure more than 50% of the vote, landing her in a runoff with second-place finisher Damian Pardo. Candidate Eddy Leal placed third, followed by James Torres in fourth. Covo ultimately lost in the runoff to Pardo, who is the current District 2 commissioner.
Between the general election and the runoff, Covo and Pardo both campaigned to receive endorsements from Leal and Torres, Assistant State Attorney Alexandra Weil wrote in a memo closing out the case with no charges filed. Torres had alleged that Covo offered him a job at the Omni Community Redevelopment Agency if he agreed to endorse her, Weil wrote, noting that Torres “believes that Covo may have convinced Leal to endorse her by offering him a job.”
The Broward State Attorney’s Office, however, concluded that there is “insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt” that Covo offered a job in exchange for an endorsement.
“After a complete and thorough investigation into allegations of public corruption, the Broward State Attorney’s Office has reached the same conclusion we maintained from the very beginning: Commissioner Sabina Covo did absolutely nothing wrong,” Dave Kubiliun, an attorney for Covo, said in a statement.
READ MORE: New emails deepen scandal around Miami election endorsement and bribery investigation
The Broward SAO closed the case more than a year ago, in January 2025. But Kubiliun said he only recently learned about the case’s closure after contacting the agency for an update.
“In response, we were informed that the investigation had actually been closed for more than a year due to ‘insufficient evidence’ to proceed with any case against Commissioner Covo,” Kubiliun said. “We are pleased that this matter has finally been clarified and that the investigation confirms what we have consistently maintained all along and that is, Commissioner Covo acted appropriately and lawfully. Justice has been served.”
Covo was initially elected to a shortened term as the District 2 commissioner in February 2023 to fill the vacancy created when former Commissioner Ken Russell resigned to run for Congress. She is now working as a communications consultant and is a campaign spokesperson for Lev Parnas, a Democrat running for the Miami congressional seat held by Republican U.S. Rep. María Elvira Salazar.
Leal, who was the third-place finisher in the general election for the District 2 seat, is now chief of staff to City Commissioner Miguel Angel Gabela.
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Tess Riski covers Miami City Hall. She joined the Miami Herald in 2022 and has covered local politics throughout Miami-Dade County. She is a graduate of Columbia Journalism School’s Toni Stabile Center for Investigative Journalism.