Ex-Florida governor candidate Andrew Gillum was present in hotel room where drugs were found, police say

A police report about an apparent drug overdose in a Miami Beach hotel room overnight Thursday says that one of the three men present in the room was former Florida gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum.

Three small plastic bags containing suspected crystal meth were found in the room, the police report said.

Gillum confirmed his presence in a statement Friday.

“I was in Miami last night for a wedding celebration when first responders were called to assist one of my friends. 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,” Gillum said.

He said he was thankful to Miami Beach’s emergency medical responders for the way they handled the situation. “I will spend the next few weeks with my family and appreciate privacy during this time.”

The police said officers responded to a room at 1100 West Ave., which is the address of the Mondrian South Beach. Police found fire rescue personnel treating a man for a possible drug overdose.

Police found two other men in the room, including Gillum, described as an “involved other.”

One of the men told police that when he arrived at the hotel shortly after 11 p.m. Thursday, Gillum and the person having the medical issue were “inside the room under the influence of an unknown substance.”

The police report said the man said that on arriving he “observed Mr. Gillum inside the bathroom vomiting.... Officers then attempted to speak to Mr. Gillum. Mr. Gillum was unable to communicate with officers due to his inebriated state.”

The report also said that fire-rescue responded a second time to the hotel for a welfare check on Gillum and determined he was in stable condition and his vital signs were normal.

A call to Gillum’s longtime spokesman and advisor Friday morning went directly to voice mail and he didn’t immediately respond to a text message.

A longtime supporter of Gillum’s, Democratic state Rep. Shevrin Jones, said Friday morning he knew nothing except an image he saw on Twitter of a police report. He said he hasn’t been in touch with Gillum in the last day.

Gillum sought to become Florida’s first African American governor in 2018 but lost to his Republican opponent, Ron DeSantis.