FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Broward Sheriff Scott Israel amended a gift disclosure with the state in which he admitted he accepted $850 worth of party passes to the Mar-a-Lago Club on New Year's Eve, according to state financial records.
Israel amended the gift disclosure in August shortly after Local 10 reported he and his family took five-day cruise on the NewVida, which rents for up to $190,000 a week.
Robert Pereira, who donated $250,000 to Israel's campaign last year, gave both gifts to the sheriff. Israel paid $1,500 to go on the cruise with Pereira.
"He's a giving man. He's a wonderful man," Israel told Local 10 in July. "I didn't take a freebie of any kind."
Former Broward Sheriff's Commander Sam Frusterio filed a complaint with the Florida Commission on Ethics, claiming Israel undervalued the cruise. The commission has yet to rule on the complaint.