Former State House Candidate Pleads Guilty, gets 21 months

Former State House candidate Angelo Cappelli has been sentenced to 21 months in prison after pleading guilty to  charges of perjury and grand theft.

Cappelli entered his plea on Friday. Until recently, Cappelli was a hot newcomer on the local political scene, building key allies in his race for House District 52.

Cappelli narrowly lost the election, but his fundraising prowess, Ivy League pedigree and well-established banking job with SunTrust solidified his future with the local Republican Party.

That was until SunTrust began taking a closer look at paperwork coming from his office.

After a six-week investigation, police arrested Cappelli in August at his lawyer's office on Central Avenue. He faces grand theft and perjury charges, according to St. Petersburg authorities.

Cappelli, 38, is accused of stealing more than $100,000 from the trust of a deceased bank client. He could not be reached for comment.

[Pictured: Angelo Cappelli, Times files]

-Abhi Raghunathan, Times Staff Writer