An allegedly illegal effort to promote a Boca Raton man's sham candidacy for a state Senate seat in South Florida bears resemblance — and apparent connections — to two other shadowy legislative campaigns in the fall.
The mysterious source of money — an entity called "Grow United" — paid for mailers in the three races, including Miami-Dade’s Senate District 37.
There, former state Sen. Frank Artiles has been indicted on charges he offered money to no-party candidate Alexis "Alex" Rodriguez to run in the race, an action that is illegal under Florida law. Rodriguez, who is from Boca Raton, is also facing charges over the alleged funding of a shill campaign.