Embattled Miami Beach Candidate Wants Accuser To Apologize

MIAMI BEACH, FL — Embattled Miami Beach candidate Rafael A. Velasquez insisted in an interview with Patch on Tuesday that the elected official who accused him of exposing himself should apologize to him and retract her accusation. He said that his wife supports him "100 percent." And despite the allegation from Commissioner Kristen Rosen Gonzalez, Velasquez said he plans to stay in the race with less than a week to go before Election Day.

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"I feel strong and encouraged moving forward because I know that truth is on my side," Velasquez asserted. "I would respectfully request Kristin to retract her statement and apologize to me."

Rosen Gonzalez told Patch on Monday that she is considering filing a criminal complaint against Velasquez following the Oct. 18 incident in her car. She said that she was "embarrassed" to go public until it looked as though Velasquez was likely to win a seat on the commission.

"After it happened, I swept it under the rug and continued to campaign for him," Rosen Gonzalez said in Monday's interview. "I think I was ashamed and by ignoring it and pretending that it didn’t happen would make it go away."

Velasquez said that he and Rosen Gonzalez had an impromptu dinner after a long day of canvassing that ended in the commissioner's neighborhood. He was uncertain whether the dinner took place on the 18th as Rosen Gonzalez said.

"I was canvassing all day long. I was all sweaty," he said. "It so happened that I had to knock at her door. She was part of my canvassing. And so when I knocked at her door, she said ‘hey Rafa come in.' We talked. She said 'well it’s late, do you want to have dinner with me? So I said okay. Let'’s go have dinner. So we went to the restaurant. We talked a lot about politics and strategy. And we had drinks and then we went back to my car and I went home. That’s it."

He said that Rosen Gonzalez' story was "laughable" and he thought a reporter who called him with the allegation was part of a practical joke.

"That’s laughable because she is the Harvey Weinstein and not me. She is the person in power. She is the elected official," he explained. "She has the whole machinery behind her. I’m just a new guy in town. I’m trying to be a candidate and represent our people."

Watch Now: Candidate For Miami Beach Commission Accused of Indecent Exposure

A second woman, identified as Frances Alban of Alban Communications told Local 10 News that Velasquz grabbed her backside while taking a photograph with her in June and then sent suggestive text messages, something that he apologized for on Tuesday even though he said that he did not intentionally touch the woman inappropriately.

"She never expressed to me that she had a problem with it until the article comes out and then she didn’t contact me. She contacted The Miami Herald," he said. " So more power to her. I mean I apologized. I apologized to everybody to whom I miscommunicated."

Velasquez is running for the same seat held by former Commissioner Michael Grieco, who resigned last week and entered into a plea agreement with the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office over a misdemeanor election finance crime.

Rosen Gonzalez, who is running for Congress in the seat now held by the retiring U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, said she may also go to the police.

"The right thing for him to do is apologize to me, the other women, his wife and his family, and then go for help," she explained. "He needs therapy. And possibly help for alcohol abuse: What he does not need is to be in a position of power, which I think will endanger other women."

Rosen Gonzalez called her decision to come forward one of the most difficult she has ever had to make. "It is embarrassing, and I am ashamed, when my only crime was helping him get elected," she said. "He should withdraw from the race, as he has no business being in public office. He has no respect for women."

Rafael A. Velasquez is pictured with his wife and two young daughters. Photo used with permission of Velasquez.