The Mayor of Hallandale Beach, Florida surrendered to authorities on Thursday on third-degree felony charges of Money Laundering, official misconduct and exceeding limits on campaign contributions. Mayor Joy Cooper (D) is also charged with soliciting contributions in City Hall – a misdemeanor. Each felony carries a maximum five year prison sentence.

According to prosecutors, the FBI began investigating Cooper in May, 2012 – posing as wealthy real estate developers from California seeking political favors from Cooper in exchange for a Hallandale Beach project. The undercover agents hired disbarred Hollywood attorney Alan Koslow to represent them, who funneled $5,000 in campaign contributions to Cooper in the form of “checks from a bunch of Russian names,” according to court documents. Koslow did not initially know that the men were with the FBI, nor that he was also a target in their investigation.

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