Texas Democratic mayoral candidate Zul Mirza Mohamed has been indicted on 109 felony voter fraud charges.
Mohamed, who was running to become the mayor of Carrollton, Texas, was arrested and charged last October.
Mohamed was charged with 25 counts of knowingly possessing a ballot with intent to defraud, a second-degree felony, and 84 counts of providing false info on a voting application, a third-degree felony.
A Denton County grand jury Thursday decided to formally charge Mohamed on all 109 counts, the Record-Chronicle reported.
“Mail ballots are inherently insecure and vulnerable to fraud, and I am committed to safeguarding the integrity of our elections. My office is prepared to assist any Texas county in combating this form of fraud,” Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a statement.
County and state investigators issued a search warrant on his home back in September 2020 in Carrollton and discovered 25 ballots, the Denton County Sheriff’s Office said.
The sheriff’s office said that on Sept. 23, investigators became aware someone had requested absentee ballots be sent to a P.O. Box in Lewisville, Texas, which allegedly belonged to a nursing home facility.
But when investigators contacted Carrollton residents whose ballots had been requested, those individuals said they had not applied for the ballots.
Police said they learned the P.O. Box had been obtained with a fake Texas driver’s license and a false University of North Texas student ID. Police began surveilling the postal facility.
The box of requested ballots was picked up at the facility; when police searched Mohamed’s house, they allegedly found the box containing the registered ballots, with several already open.
“Voter fraud is a serious and widespread issue and cannot be tolerated,” Denton County Sheriff Tracey Murphree said in a statement. “The fact an actual candidate for public office would engage in these activities is appalling. We will continue to aggressively investigate allegations of voter fraud.”
Mohamed had been seeking election against incumbent Mayor Kevin Falconer.
Medina County Justice of the Peace Tomas Ramirez was arrested last month and is facing one count of organized election fraud, one count of assisting voter voting ballot by mail, and 17 counts of unlawful possession of a ballot or ballot envelope
“I was stunned by the allegations because there is absolutely no truth to them. I have spent the last 27 years building my law practice and serving in this community which has created my reputation for fairness, sincerity, and integrity. … For people who know me, these allegations are absurd. To those who don’t, it provides reason to sneer and hate,” Ramirez said of the charges.
Ramirez was arrested after a Bandera Grand Jury indicted him, Leonor Rivas Garza, Eva Ann Martinez, and Mary Balderrama on Feb. 9.
Garza, Martinez, and Balderrama each face one charge of organized election fraud, as well as multiple counts of illegal voting, unlawful possession of a ballot or ballot envelope, election fraud, and other charges.
