A former Florida lawmaker and political ally of Gov. Ron DeSantis was arrested Tuesday and accused of molesting a young boy at the child’s home, on fishing excursions and while on a family cruise, arrest records show.
\n\nMichael Caruso, a 67-year-old Republican whom DeSantis appointed as Palm Beach County’s clerk of courts and comptroller a year ago, was taken into custody by local police and officers from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
\n\n“Being in a position of public trust provides no shield from accountability,” Attorney General James Uthmeier said in a statement Tuesday.
\n\nAfter the arrest was announced, DeSantis suspended Caruso from his post and noted in an executive order that the allegations include lewd or lascivious molestation, lewd or lascivious exhibition, kidnapping, child abuse causing mental injury, and luring or enticing a child.
\n\nCaruso had regular and unsupervised access to the child, a probable cause affidavit released by the governor’s office said.
\n\nCaruso is accused of preying on the boy more than half a dozen times since Thanksgiving 2024, sometimes under the guise of playing “tickle monster,” according to the affidavit.
\n\nAsked at a news conference whether he was aware of the allegations before Caruso was nominated for…
Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/