The head of Ron De Santis’ elections fraud unit, Peter Antonacci, lay dying in the Florida governor’s office for 24 minutes last year, a report has revealed.
According to public records sourced by Florida Bulldog, Antonacci was filmed by security cameras dying in the governor’s office in the Florida State Capitol Building for nearly half an hour before he was noticed by staff.
Antonacci, suffered a fatal heart attack in September 2022, three months after DeSantis appointed him as director of the Office of Election Crimes and Security. He had previously served as chief judge of the state Division of Administrative Hearings under DeSantis, having worked as an elections supervisor and state attorney for former governor Rick Scott.
At the time of his death, DeSantis, who is running in the Republican primaries, issued a statement saying: “Casey [his wife] and I are deeply saddened by the passing of Peter Antonacci, Director of the Office of Elections Crimes and Security.
Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images
“He was a dedicated, tenacious, and assiduous public servant, lawyer, and respected professional—a friend to all in the State of Florida. He vigilantly sought to uphold the law throughout his lengthy career as a Deputy Attorney General, Statewide Prosecutor, General Counsel, Supervisor of Elections, and most recently as the newly appointed watchdog over Florida’s election security.
“His fighting passion will be missed, and his legacy will persist in the hearts and minds of many.”
Now, further details of his death have emerged in a report by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE). The report said that Antonacci left a meeting when he fell ill.
It said: “At approximately 1:46 p.m., Mr. Antonacci is observed standing up and walking out of the conference room [redacted] … “He steadies himself on the left wall. The hall [redacted] when he falls and appears to strike his head on the door on the [redacted] (sic). There appeared to be no foul play in the Room (sic) or hallway. At approximately 2:10:05pm, FDL Comm. [Mark] Glass appears to notice Antonacci down the hallway to his aid (sic).”
It said that in a police interview Glass, an FDLE Commissioner and former deputy director of the Capitol Police, said he left the meeting to speak to General Counsel Ryan Newman when he noticed Antonacci.
The report said: “Commissioner Glass stated when looking down the hallway he observed what appeared to be dark slacks and black shoes laying on the ground toes face down. Commissioner Glass stated he observed from the hip back and he looked at General Counsel Newman asking if that was Mr. Antonacci who was in the meeting. Commissioner Glass stated General Counsel Newman and he ran over there, immediately rolled the subject over and identified him as Mr. Antonacci.”
He called for help from FDLE Chief of Staff Shane Desguin and they then tried to revive him with chest compressions and by using a defibrillator. They called for help until police arrived. His face was “purple and blue,” Glass told police.
According to 911 audio cited by the report, an unnamed caller told 911 operators that Antonacci was not awake and needed CPR. The report said police arrived at 2:11 p.m. and used an automated external defibrillator to try and save him.
It added that at 2:34 p.m.: “The male subject was transported by Leon County Emergency Medical Services to Tallahassee Memorial Hospital (TMH) were he was pronounced deceased by medical staff. Initial investigation indicated that the death was the result of a medical condition.”
It also said he had “a long history of heart disease and cardiac issues that resulted in several surgeries.”
Newsweek has contacted DeSantis by email to comment on this story.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.