An Orange County judge has ordered the arrest of far-right blogger and Proud Boys associate Jacob Engels, who has been held in contempt of court in a civil suit brought by a former Florida House candidate who says Engels published false information about her and conspired with other operatives to defame her during last year’s primary.
A warrant was issued for Engels on Thursday, nearly a month after former candidate Elizabeth Cornell’s attorney asked Judge James Craner to imprison him if he didn’t follow court orders. On Aug. 29, Craner signed an order for Engels to be taken to the Orange County jail and assessed a fine of $1,500 per day if he did not provide the records and information within 10 days.
Engels, who does not have an attorney, told the Orlando Sentinel he struggled with the filing systems for the Clerk of Courts and the state during the past several weeks. He said he was finally able to submit responses to Cornell’s questions on Thursday.
“All parties have been made aware of these issues along the way,” he said.
Engels told Craner last month he doesn’t have the documents Cornell is requesting, which included communications and records of payment Engels received from her opponent and eventual winner, Rep. Taylor Yarkosky of Montverde, and several political operatives and committees.
Cornell’s suit focuses on two blog posts published by Engels last summer, including one where he cited claims from a lawsuit filed by one of Cornell’s former clients, who said Cornell, a financial advisor, had given her poor guidance.
That same post said Cornell had outstanding liens for work on her home completed several years ago and did not vote for Gov. Ron DeSantis or former President Donald Trump during previous Republican primaries. Another post accused Cornell of having an affair with a married man.
Some of the claims Engels published were repeated in mailers sent by a committee operated by Stafford Jones, a Gainesville Republican consultant. Jones told the Sentinel earlier this year he doesn’t know Engels and has never worked with him
As part of the suit, Cornell and her attorney, Ricardo Reyes, are seeking a bevy of records and to subpoena nearly two dozen individuals, including Yarkosky, Jones and several other GOP elected officials and operatives. But Engels has not provided the documents they requested nor answers to their questions, Cornell and Reyes say.
Craner held Engels in contempt of court in June, after he missed several hearings. Engels said later that he had been left off the distribution list for court filings and the notice of the June hearing did not indicate his attendance was required.
