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The Georgia governor candidate who toured his "deportation bus” has been indicted for insurance fraud

The indictment said the GOP politician faked a computer robbery
The Georgia governor candidate who toured his "deportation bus” has been indicted for insurance fraud

The guy who infamously drove a “deportation bus” around Georgia as part of his bid to become governor (he finished in last place) has been indicted on charges that he faked a computer robbery to get an insurance payout.

Michael Williams briefly spent some time in jail after he turned himself in Wednesday. An attorney representing the Republican politician released a statement saying Williams would be released on bond. He is a sitting member of the Georgia Senate.

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The indictment said Williams had claimed $300,000 worth of computer servers used for mining bitcoin were stolen from his Gainesville offices in May, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Investigators accused Williams of lying for saying he was in Forsyth County and not in Gainesville at the time of the alleged robbery. The indictment charges Williams with making false insurance claims. It’s unclear what happened to the computer servers.

While campaigning during the primaries, Williams drew national attention for his flamboyant, offensive tactics in which he toured his state in a bus promising he would deport undocumented immigrants.

“DANGER! MURDERERS, RAPISTS, KIDNAPPERS, CHILD MOLESTORS, AND OTHER CRIMINALS ON BOARD,” reads a warning on the rear door of the bus. “FOLLOW ME TO MEXICO.”

Republican Brian Kemp ultimately claimed victory in the Georgia gubernatorial race, though his win has come with a large dose of controversy. As Georgia’s secretary of state, Kemp was in charge of overseeing the election in which he was also a candidate. His opponent, Democrat Stacey Abrams, failed to call Kemp a “legitimate” winner and said “there was a deliberate and intentional disinvestment and, I think, destruction of the administration of elections in the state of Georgia.”

Cover: A Georgia gubernatorial candidate touring the state in a "deportation bus" is greeted with protests by immigrants and other residents in Clarkston, Ga., Wednesday, May 16, 2018. State Sen. Michael Williams, who trails in public polling, has received condemnation for the move just days before voters make their choice in the May 22 primary elections. (AP Photo/Benjamin Nadler)