Florida has previously been named the most corrupt state in the country, according to a study by the nonprofit Integrity Florida.

More than 1,000 public officials from Florida have been convicted of public corruption over the years.

As well, previous State Integrity Investigation initiatives have found that Florida ranks among the worst for accountability and transparency.

To try and address the issue, several months ago a federal prosecutor had warned about going after corruption in north Florida and he set up a public trust unit to try and do it, allegedly working along with the FBI and IRS to achieve the goal in finding wrongdoers.

It didn't take long for an investigation into corruption in City Hall, conducted by the FBI, to find some wrongdoing.

This year, they ended up charging a suspended city commissioner who eventually pleaded guilty to corruption charges, saying he took money from FBI agents and Uber in exchange for his influence associated with his position.

A spokesman for Uber said that they allegedly viewed it as extortion which is why they fully cooperated with the FBI for their investigation.

In More Recent News On The Corruption Investigation...

A number of public officials, at least 29 so far, have been recently indicted in a corruption scheme in Florida, including an ex-USDA director, a police officer, and clerk of courts.

Various investigations have found numerous individuals engaged in a myriad of offenses and this recent investigation allegedly stems from a concern for the misuse of federal farm money.

It's alleged that public officials actively defrauded taxpayers at least $373k with a broad based conspiracy to steal government drought funding, with bogus claims, and hide the actions through identity theft and other federal crimes.

For now, all 29 defendants have pleaded "not guilty" to the charges and those trials are expected to begin early next year.

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