Edgewater Mayor Diezel DePew, who became Florida’s youngest mayor when he was elected in 2022 at age 18, was accused by a resident during Monday’s City Council meeting of attempting to purchase alcohol with a fake ID last month.
The resident made the claim during the citizen comment portion of the meeting. Port Orange police did not immediately respond to The News-Journal on Wednesday about the matter.
DePew did not immediately respond to a text message seeking comment on Wednesday.
On Monday night, Edgewater resident Anthony Kianvar walked to the podium in what appeared to be a packed council chamber and said, “On or about June 5th of last month, our Mayor, Mr. DePew, along with Donald Burnette, the Mayor of Port Orange, decided to have an evening at a business that served alcoholic beverages in Port Orange. And during their visit, Mr. DePew attempted to use a Georgia ID with a birth date of 2000.”
DePew interrupted Kianvar and asked him to confine himself to city matters.
“Okay, well, I think this is a city matter, sir,” Kianvar said. “Now, you may think our mayor is 19 years old. You may think he’s not 24.”
DePew asked Kianvar to address the council only on municipal matters.
“This absolutely has to do with the business of the city, sir, because you are absolutely behaving in a manner that is not befitting the office to which you were elected,” he said.
DePew attempted to overrule Kiavar, reiterating the need to address the council on city matters, saying, “Thank you for your comment. Please relate to city matters … any city issue you may have.”
Kianvar: “Okay, yes. This is a city matter.”
At one point, DePew shouted for an “officer.”
Kianvar said, “I would like you to tell me why this is not a city matter.”
Finally, DePew said, “This is a personal matter that may be addressed later. Thank you for your comment.”
Kianvar said, “This is not a personal matter because you are an elected official.”
On Wednesday, Burnette, the Port Orange mayor who is also running for Volusia County Council chairman, said he was at the Half Wall restaurant and beer house in Port Orange for dinner with a friend on June 5 and that DePew asked him to join him.
“He didn’t stay long and he left,” Burnette said. “I don’t know much about it.
“I’m not sure if there’s anything personal between him and some guest,” Burnette said, “because the waiter made some comments about him as he was leaving, and honestly, I wasn’t involved in it, I didn’t see much of it, and I wanted to stay out of it, so I was like, ‘OK.’”
Burnette said he didn’t see any police at the restaurant.
“If that kid did something stupid, he wouldn’t be the first 20-year-old to do something like that,” Burnette said. “And I didn’t even know he was underage, to be honest with you.”
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Edgewater mayor interrupts resident who accuses him of underage drinking
