Miami Beach police say former Tallahassee mayor Andrew Gillum was found “inebriated” in a hotel room with a known homosexual male escort who was treated for a suspected meth overdose.
Police responded to a hotel room at the upscale Mondrian South Beach Hotel around 1 a.m. Friday and found Gillum in a room with Travis Dyson, a homosexual male escort and adult film star who may have overdosed on crystal meth.
In a police report obtained by conservative activist Candace Owens, medics treated Dyson, 30, for a suspected drug overdose and transported him to a local hospital, where he was evaluated and released.
Police observed Gillum, 40, in a bathroom vomiting in the toilet and officers found three plastic baggies containing “suspected crystal meth” on the bed and on the floor.
Police observed bed sheets soiled with “blood and feces,” according to Owens’ police source. She said Gillum, Dyson, who was naked, and the soiled bed sheets were captured on the officers’ body cameras and that the video footage will be released.
Police were unable to communicate with Gillum due to his “inebriated state,” the New York Times reported.
Aldo Mejias, 56, told police he lent Dyson his credit card to rent a room at the hotel around 4 p.m. Thursday. Mejias said he planned to meet up with Dyson later that night for drinks on South Beach.
Dyson and Gillum arrived at the room around 6 p.m. Thursday, and Mejias arrived just after 11 p.m. that night.
Dyson opened the door for Mejias and then walked over to the bed and collapsed. Mejias told the NY Times that Dyson was in the room with a man he did not know.
“I was seeing very shallow breathing,” Mejias said of Dyson. Mejias said Gillum “was passed out on the floor, throwing up.”
Mejias performed chest compressions on Dyson and called 911. After police returned to the hotel a second time to conduct a “welfare check” on Gillum, he was allowed to leave the hotel and police escorted him the short distance to his home, according to Owens.
Despite an earlier report by Miami Beach police that “arrests were made,” Gillum was not arrested.
“At this time, the incident is not being investigated as a criminal matter, Officer Ernesto Rodriguez said in an email to The NY Times.
After the news broke on Friday, Gillum released a statement to the Miami Herald, saying he was in Miami for “a wedding celebration” when “first responders were called to assist one of my friends.”
He added: “While I had too much to drink, I want to be clear that I have never used methamphetamines. I apologize to the people of Florida for the distraction this has caused our movement.”
The former Democratic candidate for Governor of Florida didn’t clarify which movement he was referring to. He was hired as a CNN contributor in 2019, after he was narrowly defeated by Republican Ron DeSantis in the election.
Gillum thanked “the incredible Miami Beach EMS team for their efforts” and he said he plans to spend the next few weeks with his wife of 11 years, R. Jai Gillum, and their three children, 5-year-old twins Caroline and Jackson and 2-year-old Davis. He also asked for privacy for his family.
In an interview with The Miami New Times newspaper, Dyson said he and Gillum met in the spring of last year and have been “friends for a while.” He said he was not celebrating a wedding, which conflicted with Gillum’s statement to The Herald.
“I personally was not celebrating a wedding,” Dyson said. “I don’t know if Gillum was in town for a wedding. He did not mention that.”
Dyson then paused and hung up the phone without further comment.
House Rep. Matt Gaetz, who self-quarantined for 14 days after shaking hands with a man who had coronavirus, poked fun at Gillum in tweets on Friday.
“Everyone should respect @AndrewGillum’s privacy as he explains why he was one of three men in a hotel room [with] 3 bags of meth, too impaired to talk to first responders. I know what you’re all thinking – this is not very COVID-19 hygienic. #GillumSurge.”
