Middle District of Florida

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington has sentenced Martin Howard Winters (55, Valrico), the leader of the River Otter Preppers organization, to 30 months’ imprisonment for manufacturing and possessing destructive devices.  He pleaded guilty on August 28, 2014. 

On November 20, 2014, Winters’s co-defendant, Michael Keith Bonta (50, Valrico), was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for making the destructive devices for Winters.  He pleaded guilty on September 2, 2014. 

According to testimony and court documents, Winters designed the destructive devices and directed Bonta to manufacture them according to Winters’s specifications.  The devices have been described as booby traps operated with a tripwire that project pellets from a 12-gauge shotgun shell.  Bonta admitted to having made approximately 20 of the devices for Winters.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and the United States Marshals Service.  It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Donald L. Hansen.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announced today that Anthony Vincent Burkitt, a/k/a “Vincent Thomas Wolfe,” (44, Jacksonville) has pleaded guilty to a federal charge of failing to register as a sex offender after traveling to Florida from Maryland. He faces a maximum of 10 years in federal prison, and a lifetime of supervision. Burkitt has been in custody since his arrest on April 13, 2014.    

According to court documents, on or about June 24, 2002, Burkitt was convicted of attempted second degree rape in Baltimore County, Maryland. Subsequent to his conviction, and after being released from prison, he traveled from Maryland to Jacksonville, Florida, where he established residency in February 2013, but failed to register as a sex offender as required by the federal Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act. On April 13, 2014, a Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office deputy was dispatched to a Jacksonville residence, in reference to a domestic disturbance. At the time, Burkitt was living at the residence under the alias “Vincent Thomas Wolfe” and was arrested. Further investigation revealed that he was a sex offender, and that he had been living in Jacksonville since February 2013 without registering as required by law.

The Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act is part of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006. The Adam Walsh Act also provides for the use of federal law enforcement resources, including the United States Marshals Service, to assist state and local authorities in locating and apprehending non-compliant sex offenders. This case was investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, the United States Marshals Service, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.

Fort Myers, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that a federal jury has found Brian Robert Harling (57, Fort Myers) guilty of possessing child pornography. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 2, 2015.

According to testimony presented at trial, on July 4, 2013, a tenant living in a residence owned and previously occupied by Harling found three thumb drives that had fallen from the top of the molding inside a closet.  Harling had moved out three days earlier.  The tenant and her mother contacted the police after they discovered that the thumb drives contained child pornography.  An officer from the Fort Myers Police Department then met with the tenant to retrieve the thumb drives.  The officer also located two additional thumb drives that had been concealed on the ledge of the molding inside the closet.  Approximately 3,000 images and 35 videos depicting child pornography were found on the thumb drives.

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Fort Myers Police Department, with assistance from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Cape Coral Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Yolande G. Viacava.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Tampa, Florida – Senior U.S. District Judge Susan C. Bucklew has sentenced Stephen J. Cormier (42, Nokomis) to three years and five months in federal prison for his role in a conspiracy to commit wire fraud. As part of his sentence, the Court also entered a money judgment in the amount of $4.7 million, the proceeds of the fraudulent scheme. He pleaded guilty on March 5, 2013.

According to court documents, Cormier was the sole owner of a title insurance company, A Clear Title and Escrow Exchange (ACTEE), located in Venice, Florida. Part of the business of ACTEE was to write title insurance policies and hold escrow monies in connection with real estate and business transactions. In his capacity as a licensed escrow agent, Cormier received funds from various individuals that were the proceeds of fraudulent activity, including investments that had been made by numerous investor-victims related to “synthetic” financial transactions. These transactions generally involved promises of high rates of return within a short time period, and have been publicly labelled as fraudulent by the Securities and Exchange Commission and other financial authorities. Cormier also disbursed those funds at the request and direction of other co-conspirators. As an escrow agent, he made false representations to the victims as to the status and amount of their deposited funds. The total amount of investor funds Cormier handled was approximately $4.7 million.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Sarasota County Sherriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Jay L. Hoffer and Cherie Krigsman.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States District Judge Marcia Morales Howard has sentenced Roberto Bisono and Juan Miguel Ruiz for their roles in a conspiracy involving theft of government property and cashing numerous false and fraudulently filed federal income tax refund checks. Bisono and Ruiz were sentenced to 18 months and 15 months in federal prison, respectively. Both were also ordered to pay $711,000 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service.

According to court records, between November 2011 and April 2012, Bisono obtained U.S. Treasury checks that had been mailed to bogus taxpayers in the Bronx, New York. These checks were the results of false and fraudulently filed tax returns. In November 2011, Bisono deposited the first seven checks into a business bank account that belonged to Ruiz.  He later furnished the remaining 104 checks to Ruiz, who operated a check cashing business in Jacksonville. Ruiz deposited the additional checks into his business bank account and wrote checks totaling over $227,000 to Bisono and others associated with Bisono. 

This case was investigated by the Jacksonville office of the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dale R. Campion.

Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that James Lee Cobb, III has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, five counts of wire fraud, five counts of aggravated identity theft, and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm as an Armed Career Criminal. Cobb faces a maximum penalty of up to 20 years in federal prison for each of the conspiracy and wire fraud charges, 2 years for each aggravated identity theft charge, and a minimum mandatory of 15 years, up to life, in federal prison on the firearm charge. Sentencing is scheduled for February 27, 2015.

According to court testimony, Cobb conspired with others to use more than 7,000 stolen names, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers to file false tax returns and open pre-paid debit cards. He also obtained “burner” phones using stolen identities. From an unknown date in 2011, and continuing through November 2013, Cobb and his co-conspirators filed false tax returns claiming approximately $3 million in refunds. 

During the execution of a search warrant at Cobb’s residence, law enforcement officers recovered lists and medical records containing the personal identifying information of more than 7,000 victims. Many of the victims had their identities stolen from healthcare facilities, including from the James A. Haley VA hospital; the Florida Hospital (formerly known as University Community Hospital); ambulance services in Virginia, Georgia, and Texas; a local medical billing company; and court records. In addition, a number of deceased victims’ names were obtained from a genealogy website.

Officers also found two guns in the residence – a loaded handgun and an AR-15-style rifle with a fully-loaded 30-round magazine. At the time of this offense, Cobb was on supervised release from a prior federal firearm conviction.

This case was investigated by the Tampa Police Department, the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ Office of Inspector General, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, and  members of the Tampa Bay Identity Theft Alliance, including the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Thomas N. Palermo and U.S Department of Justice Trial Attorney Timothy P. Loper of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.

Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Benjamin Renteria-Arboleda (54, Colombia, South America) has pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to possess with intent to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine on board a vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. He faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years, up to life, in federal prison. Sentencing is scheduled for January 20, 2015.

According to the plea agreement, since July 2001, at least seven maritime cocaine shipments planned by Renteria-Arboleda and others were interdicted by the United States Coast Guard and the United States Navy, in the Pacific Ocean, resulting in the seizure of approximately nine tons of cocaine. Renteria-Arboleda’s roles in the conspiracy included contracting for the construction, and dispatching, go-fast vessels  and self-propelled semi-submersible vessels. Many of the vessels dispatched by Renteria-Arboleda successfully delivered cocaine and were not interdicted by the United States.

Renteria-Arboleda was arrested in Colombia and subsequently extradited to the United States for prosecution. 

This case was investigated by the Panama Express Strike Force, a standing Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation, comprised of agents and analysts from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the United States Coast Guard Investigative Service, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, and the U.S. Southern Command's Joint Interagency Task Force South. The principal mission of the OCDETF Program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and those primarily responsible for the nation’s drug supply. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher F. Murray.

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Isherman Tafari (32, New York) has pleaded guilty to importing 5 kilograms or more of cocaine into the United States. He faces a minimum mandatory penalty of 10 years, up to life, in federal prison.

According to the plea agreement, on June 20, 2014, Tafari departed Port Canaveral on an eight-day cruise to the southern Caribbean.  When the ship returned to Port Canaveral on June 28, 2014, federal agents and local law enforcement officers searched Tafari’s luggage and discovered packages containing a white, powdery substance that tested positive for cocaine. The gross weight of the cocaine was determined to be approximately 5,450 grams.

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Embry J. Kidd.

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Roy B. Dalton, Jr. today sentenced Tony Frith (36, Orlando) to 5 years and 10 months in federal prison for access device fraud.  He was also ordered to pay more than $469,000 in restitution to the victims of his offense. Frith pleaded guilty on June 26, 2014. 

According to court documents, officers from the Orlando Police Department conducted a traffic stop of Frith’s vehicle on September 15, 2013. Pursuant to the stop, officers conducted a search the vehicle and found a backpack containing a computer, an attached encoding device, and more than 200 counterfeit credit cards. Further investigation revealed that the credit cards were counterfeit and that they had been re-encoded with stolen credit card numbers. During a subsequent examination of Frith’s computer authorities found more than 3,000 credit card numbers, as well as text files with names, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers. The total amount of actual loss associated with the counterfeit credit cards and stolen credit card numbers found in Frith’s possession is over $470,000.

This case was investigated by the Orlando Police Department and the United States Secret Service.  It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg.

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the return of an indictment charging David Jacob William Guite (30, DeLand) with producing, distributing, receiving, and possessing child pornography. If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years in federal prison and a potential life term of supervision. Guite was arrested on October 29, 2014, at his residence in DeLand, Florida, pursuant to a federal criminal complaint. During his initial court appearance, he was ordered detained pending trial.  

According to the criminal complaint, an agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, acting in an undercover capacity, posted an advertisement on an online website for individuals who have a sexual interest in children and incest. Guite responded to the agent’s advertisement and, during the ensuing conversation, sent the agent sexually explicit images of a male child.

On October 29, 2014, FBI agents executed a federal search warrant at Guite’s residence. During an interview, he admitted to manufacturing, possessing, and distributing multiple sexually explicit images of minor children. A search and subsequent analysis of Guite’s smart phone revealed sexually explicit images of a male child taken during the time of the conversation with the undercover FBI agent.  

An indictment and a criminal complaint are merely formal charges that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent until, and unless, proven guilty.  

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the DeLand Police Department, and the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Embry J. Kidd.

It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Eugene Edward Hudome (60, Melbourne) has pleaded guilty to using a minor to produce images of child pornography. He faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years, up to 30 years, in federal prison. Hudome’s sentencing is scheduled for April 2, 2015.

According to the plea agreement, in 2003, Hudome used a camcorder to produce pornographic images of a female minor. In 2014, he uploaded at least two pornographic images of female minors onto his Microsoft SkyDrive account, after which Microsoft notified law enforcement. Agents subsequently executed a search warrant at Hudome’s residence and recovered a video, 170 CD/DVDs, and a computer, all of which contained pornographic images of minor victims. Agents also located additional child pornography on other electronic devices and storage media. During an interview with the agents, Hudome admitted that he had produced the pornography of the original female minor victim sometime in 2003, as she slept in his residence. He further admitted to subsequently converting the images from videotape to digital media.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Andrew C. Searle.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Ocala, Florida – Senior United States District Judge W. Terrell Hodges sentenced Dominick Nardone (35, Belleview) yesterday to seven years in federal prison for receiving images of child pornography. In addition to the prison term, he will be required to serve a 10-year term of supervision following his release and must register as a sex offender. Nardone pleaded guilty on August 26, 2014.

According to court documents, on January 13, 2014, federal agents executed a search warrant at Nardone’s Belleview residence, after discovering Internet Protocol (IP) addresses linked to known images of child pornography at that location. During an interview with agents, Nardone admitted that he had been downloading child pornography since “sometime in the 1990s.” He expressed a preference for images of young boys between the ages of three and eleven. Nardone also told the agents that they would find thousands of images and movie files of child pornography on his personal computer and on multiple CDs and DVDs throughout the home. A forensic examination of these items subsequently confirmed that Nardone had received approximately 85,000 images of child pornography over the Internet.

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Bodnar, Jr.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Ocala, Florida – Senior U.S. District Judge Wm. Terrell Hodges yesterday sentenced Jason Monroe Epstein (29, Orlando) to 18 months in federal prison for receipt of a bribe by a public official. Epstein previously pleaded guilty to the offense on September 9, 2014.

According to court documents, between April 1, 2012 and April 30, 2014, Epstein worked as a penitentiary corrections officer at the Coleman Federal Correctional Complex in Sumter County, Florida. During that time, federal agents received reliable information from inmates at the facility that Epstein had been accepting monetary payments in return for smuggling tobacco and marijuana into the prison. Further investigation resulted in recorded conversations between Epstein and the inmates, in which Epstein admitted to accepting the bribes. When confronted by investigators, Epstein confessed that he had received “hundreds of dollars” in illegal payments from the inmates and that he had smuggled the contraband into the prison for them on at least “three or four” occasions.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Justice- Office of the Inspector General. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Bodnar, Jr.

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Jeffrey Hall (48, Maitland) has pleaded guilty to mail fraud. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. As part of his plea agreement, Hall agreed to pay over $1.5 million in restitution. His sentencing has been scheduled for February 19, 2015.

Hall was indicted on August 27, 2014. 

According to court documents, Hall worked at a local art gallery with other locations outside of Central Florida. Over a two-year period, he used his position at the gallery to embezzle over $1.5 million. Hall did this by diverting proceeds from the sale of artwork to his own personal bank accounts, or to a business account that belonged to him. He also used the gallery’s artwork as loan collateral for himself and sold some of the artwork on eBay.

This case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the unsealing of indictments charging 27 individuals with participating in a scheme to defraud the compensation fund established as a result of the BP oil spill in 2010. Twenty-six indictments charge a single count of mail fraud, while one indictment charges Justin Kelly (33, Jacksonville) with five counts of mail fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft. 

If convicted of mail fraud, each individual faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. In the case of Justin Kelly, he faces an additional mandatory two-year term of imprisonment, which must be served consecutive to any sentence imposed for mail fraud. The indictments also notify the defendants that the United States will be seeking forfeiture money judgments for sums representing the amount of proceeds fraudulently received as a result of the charged criminal conduct.

According to the indictments, following the April 2010 explosion of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig (which was being leased by BP – formerly known as British Petroleum), the defendants misrepresented that they were employees of businesses that had been affected by the oil spill. They then filed lost income claims with the Gulf Coast Claims Facility, an independent facility established to review and pay qualified claimants, whom BP had agreed to compensate. The indictments allege that as part of the scheme to defraud, the defendants would mail documents in support of their fraudulent claims, resulting in funds being dispersed by the Gulf Coast Claims Facility. In the case of Justin Kelly, the indictment further alleges that he unlawfully used the identification of others to submit multiple claims.

The chart below reflects the individuals charged, along with the forfeiture money judgments being sought:

DEFENDANT

AGE

RESIDENCE

MONEY JUDGMENT SOUGHT

Justin Kelly

33

Jacksonville

$157,255.26

32

Jacksonville

$54,129.06

Lamar Anderson

35

Jacksonville

$26,319.92

Dwight Barber, Jr.

28

Lawtey

$44,694.08

Reggie Bates

46

Jacksonville

$38,765.58

Jameshia Bowes

44

Jacksonville

$44,206.48

Michael Bowes

27

Jacksonville

$26,830.76

Andrew Byers

35

Jacksonville

$20,851.18

Jacinto Dor

36

Jacksonville

$38,342.60

Tiffini Dor

33

Jacksonville

$44,680.40

Vincent Green

45

Jacksonville

$74,238.96

Angela Kelly

60

Jacksonville

$51,858.26

Bobby Kelly, Sr.

59

Jacksonville

$27,509.51

Anita McCorvey*

35

Pascagoula, Mississippi

$37,782.08

Arlesia McRae

43

Jacksonville

$36,886.58

Nigel Mills

32

Jacksonville

$16,117.98

Charlotte Montgomery*

58

Jacksonville

$18,578.59

Cory Morton*

27

Charlotte, North Carolina

$31,448.83

Robert Owens III

29

St. Johns

$40,062.47

Terrell Reynolds

35

Jacksonville

$11,925.94

Cheryl Richardson*

54

Jacksonville

$33,315.84

Ricky Riley, Jr.*

27

Jacksonville

$17,853.12

Veronica Robinson

32

Jacksonville

$19,722.74

Emmit Wade, Jr.

33

Jacksonville

$17,623.46

Matthew Walker

34

Jacksonville

$76,636.12

Jarrett Williams*

24

Jacksonville

$26,792.50

Louis Wordlaw

31

Atlantic Beach

$51,198.60

*individuals not in custody

$1,085,626.90

“The indictment of these 27 individuals is yet another example of how the Secret Service continues to successfully identify and combat fraudulent schemes,” said Lee Fields, Special Agent in Charge of the Secret Service Jacksonville Field Office. “The Secret Service utilized state-of-the-art investigative techniques to dismantle this criminal network which will result in significant positive impact to both the local and area wide communities. Our success in this case and other similar investigations is a result of extraordinary work of our investigators and our close work with our network of law enforcement partners.”

An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of one or more federal criminal laws, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

These cases were investigated by the United States Secret Service. The following agencies provided significant assistance in executing the arrests of the above-named individuals: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), the United States Marshals Service, the United States Social Security Administration, the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigations, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Florida Highway Patrol, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, and the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office. The cases will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Diidri Robinson.

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell has sentenced Jose Perez-Osorio (46, Michoacàn, Mexico) to 10 years and 1 month in federal prison for conspiring with others to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine. He pleaded guilty on July 29, 2014.

According to court documents, Perez-Osorio worked through others to recruit and manage drug and money couriers. In 2010, he attempted to recruit an undercover Pasco County Sheriff’s Office detective (UC) to work for him as a drug courier. Perez-Osorio’s plan was for the UC to first register a vehicle in Alabama, and then drive to Houston and pick up multiple kilograms of cocaine. The operation never took place. 

On June 29, 2011, deputies from the Jefferson County (Texas) Sheriff’s Office conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle bearing an Alabama license plate. The car was occupied by two women. During the traffic stop, deputies received consent to search and located and seized 7.5 kilograms of cocaine, which was hidden in an after-market compartment. The two women had been recruited in Hillsborough County by a co-conspirator to work as drug and money couriers for Perez-Osorio. When stopped, the women were attempting to transport the cocaine from Texas to the Middle District of Florida.

On October 28, 2013, deputies from the Orange County (Florida) Sheriff’s Office conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle Perez-Osorio was driving. Perez-Osorio did not have a valid driver’s license and was arrested. A subsequent search of the vehicle revealed a hidden compartment behind the passenger side airbag containing one kilogram of cocaine and approximately $221,250. Perez-Osorio admitted to owning the car.

This case was investigated by the DEA and the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office as part of an ongoing Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and those primarily responsible for the nation’s drug supply. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher F. Murray.

Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the unsealing of an indictment charging Bertha Hart with four counts of theft of government property. If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison for each count. The indictment also notifies Hart that the United States is seeking a money judgment in the amount of $34,859.00, the proceeds of the charged criminal conduct.

According to the indictment, from at least February 2012 through May 2012, Hart participated with others in a scheme to steal money from the U.S. government using stolen identities.

An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of one or more federal criminal laws, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

This case was investigated by the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, and the United States Secret Service. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sara C. Sweeney.

Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Richard Mosquera Mosquera (44, Colombia, South America) today pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, knowing and intending that it would be unlawfully imported into the United States. He faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years, up to a maximum term of life imprisonment.

Mosquera was indicted on June 12, 2013.

According to the plea agreement, on multiple occasions between 2009 and 2012, Mosquera worked with his co-defendant, Anderson Bryan Lever, and others to smuggle cocaine. Lever dispatched cocaine-laden vessels from San Andres Island, Colombia and Mosquera received them in Honduras. On each occasion, Mosquera received the cocaine and provided bales of United States currency (containing as much as $500,000 each) to the mariners who had just smuggled the cocaine. The mariners then smuggled the money back to San Andres Island, and Mosquera transferred the cocaine to others for eventual unlawful importation into the United States. 

Mosquera was arrested in Colombia and subsequently extradited to the United States. 

This case was investigated by the Panama Express Strike Force, a standing Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) investigation, comprised of agents and analysts from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the United States Coast Guard Investigative Service, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, and U.S. Southern Command's Joint Interagency Task Force South. The principal mission of the OCDETF Program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking and money laundering organizations and those primarily responsible for the nation’s drug supply. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher F. Murray.

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Keith Earle Young (57, Orlando) has pleaded guilty to two counts of bank robbery. He faces a maximum penalty of 40 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to court documents, Young robbed a Sun Trust Bank (Orlando) on August 25, 2014, and a Bank of America (Winter Park) on August 28, 2014. Law enforcement arrested Young on August 28, 2014, at an Orlando hotel. At the time of his arrest, he had in his possession $1,435 in stolen cash from one of the robberies. Investigators also recovered clothing that Young had worn during one of the robberies. During an interview following his arrest, Young admitted that he had committed both bank robberies. 

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Orlando Police Department, and the Winter Park Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Andrew C. Searle.

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that a federal jury has returned guilty verdicts against Keenan Davis (27, Poinciana) and Kelsey Coffee (28, Apopka). Davis was convicted of six counts of robbery affecting interstate commerce and two counts of using a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. He faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 32 years, up to life, in prison on the firearm offenses, and up to 20 years for each of the robbery offenses. Coffee was convicted of four counts of robbery and one count of using a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. He faces a minimum mandatory prison sentence of 7 years, up to life, imprisonment on the firearm offense, and up to 20 years for each of the robbery offenses. Their sentencing hearings are scheduled for February 12, 2015. Both men were originally indicted on June 26, 2014.

According to evidence presented at trial, Davis and Coffee robbed multiple retail establishments, a McDonald’s, and a Sweetbay Supermarket in 2013. During the trial, many of the victims testified that they were pepper-sprayed, zip-tied, and duct-taped while Davis, Coffee, and other co-conspirators conducted the robberies.

On September 7, 2013, after committing several previous robberies, Davis and Coffee entered the Nike Factory Store at the Ellenton Premium Outlets, with a Beretta Airsoft gun.  Moses Patterson, Danoris Scott, Tiandre Rogers, and Jamal Tillman acted as lookouts.  Following this robbery, all six individuals were arrested by deputies from the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office.

Patterson, Scott, and Rogers each previously pleaded guilty to two counts of robbery and two counts of using a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. They are scheduled to be sentenced on February 12, 2015. Tillman previously pleaded guilty to one count of robbery and one count of using a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence. He was sentenced on November 20, 2014, to six years and eight months in federal prison.     

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, the Apopka Police Department, the Plant City Police Department, and the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn P. Napier.

This is another case prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program - a nationwide, gun-violence reduction strategy.  United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III, along with Regina Lombardo, Special Agent in Charge, ATF, are coordinating the Project Safe Neighborhoods effort here in the Middle District of Florida in cooperation with federal, state, and local law enforcement officials. It is also a part of ATF’s Frontline Strategy on reducing violent crime in communities.

Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge Steven D. Merryday today sentenced Carlos Santiago Garcia (22, Oldsmar) to 17 years and 6 months in federal prison for attempting to transport a minor in interstate commerce to engage in sexual activity for the purpose of producing child pornography. Garcia was arrested in December 2013 and he pleaded guilty in August 2014.

According to court documents, Garcia posed as a minor female on Facebook to befriend a minor female victim. He then used a second fictitious online identity to convince the victim that he was a “friend” of his fabricated female identity, and could provide the victim with transportation she needed to get to a modeling job. In reality, Garcia was planning to transport the minor victim to Georgia to have sex and produce explicit images and videos of her. Garcia was arrested by members of the Clearwater Area Human Trafficking Task Force as he arrived at the victim’s residence. At the time of his arrest, law enforcement officers found marijuana, vodka, a written itinerary for the trip, as well as other items indicative of “grooming” for sex acts, inside Garcia’s vehicle. Further investigation revealed that Garcia’s e-mail accounts contained hundreds of images of child pornography, and evidence that he had been using the Internet to engage in schemes known as “catfishing” and “sextortion.”

This case was investigated by the Clearwater Area Human Trafficking Task Force, which is comprised of multiple law enforcement agency partners, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Clearwater Police Department, and the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Josephine W. Thomas.  

“This sentencing is the result of strong collaboration with local law enforcement through the Clearwater-Tampa Bay Human Trafficking Task Force,” said Susan L. McCormick, special agent in charge of HSI Tampa. “This case provides an excellent example of working together to make our communities safer for our children.”

“This case started from an alert father seeing suspicious activity and is a good lesson for all to monitor the online activities involving their children,” said Clearwater Police Chief Dan Slaughter. “All members of the Clearwater/Tampa Bay Area Task Force on Human Trafficking are glad to see justice served.”

It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Orlando, FL – U.S. District Judge Paul G. Byron has sentenced Michael Rivers (57, Windermere) to 17 years in federal prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, money laundering, and aggravated identity theft. Rivers was also ordered to pay restitution to his victims in the amount of $1,160,284. The Court also ordered him to forfeit more than $300,000 in proceeds obtained from the fraud, as well as three luxury vehicles. He pleaded guilty in March 2014.

According to court documents, Michael and Kim Rivers created an international bank software company called Global Business Genesis, LLC (“GBG”). The company was headquartered in Orlando. Michael Rivers was the Chief Executive Officer and Kim Rivers was the Executive Assistant of GBG. During the course of the conspiracy, Michael and Kim Rivers created and provided forged and false documents to potential investors. They also made false statements to investors. For example, on December 11, 2012, Michael Rivers sent an e-mail to Kim Rivers, giving her instructions on how to portray herself as an employee of a law firm. The e-mail detailed how Kim Rivers would pretend to be an administrative assistant at the firm. It further detailed how another co-conspirator would pretend to be an associate at the law firm.

In January 2013, Michael Rivers was in London trying to solicit investors. After receiving some resistance from investors, he suggested they call the law firm to speak with an attorney who could vouch for the authenticity of GBG and its license agreements. Michael Rivers called Kim Rivers, who pretended to work at the law firm. A co-conspirator then pretended to be an associate at the firm and stated that due diligence had been conducted.

In addition to the forged attorney documents, Michael and Kim Rivers told state and federal courts, the government, creditors, and opposing litigants, that Michael Rivers had debilitating cancer and was receiving treatment in Argentina. The couple often claimed that Michael Rivers was medically incapacitated in Argentina. They stated that because of his illness, they were unable to appear in court, at depositions, and at meetings in the United States. Those false representations were made in letters, e-mails, filings in state and federal court, court hearings, and in depositions. The statements were also made by agents representing the couple.

During the execution of the search warrants in this case, law enforcement officers found items including correspondence, templates, letterhead, altered documents, and computer images of signatures and seals, which were used during the course of the offenses. These items included the elements used to create the forged documents, including attorney letters, letters from doctors concerning cancer treatment in Argentina and in Florida, insurance documents concerning cancer treatment, and forged documents from financial institutions and government entities.

On August 14, 2014, Judge Byron sentenced Kim Rivers to six years in federal prison and ordered her to pay restitution to the victims in the amount of $1,160,284.

This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Christopher LaForgia, Daniel Irick, and Nicole Andrejko.

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge John Antoon, II today sentenced William A. White (38, Roanoke, VA) to 17 years and 6 months in federal prison for sending interstate threats with the intent to extort and using personal information without lawful authority in furtherance of a crime of violence. This sentence will be served consecutive to a 92-month federal sentence that White is currently serving in a separate case that was prosecuted in the Western District of Virginia. A federal jury in Orlando found White guilty on September 12, 2014.

According to evidence presented during the trial, in May 2012, White, a self-professed neo-Nazi, sent a number of e-mail threats to Lawson Lamar, who was State Attorney for the Ninth Judicial Circuit of Florida at the time, Judge Walter Komanski, and a Federal Bureau of Investigation task force agent. These e-mails included threats to kidnap, rape, and kill the recipients’ family members, including children and grandchildren. The threats listed the home addresses of the officials, and specifically named some of Mr. Lamar's grandchildren as targets. Separate threats were also directed to Mr. Lamar's son, as well as to United States District Judge James C. Turk, who had presided over White's previous case in the Western District of Virginia.           

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Vincent S. Chiu and James D. Mandolfo.

Tampa, FL – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Matthew William McLean (25, Minneapolis) pleaded guilty yesterday to attempted transportation of a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity and committing a felony sex offense by a registered sex offender. He faces a mandatory minimum term of 20 years, up to a maximum penalty of life in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

McLean was indicted on September 10, 2014.

According to the plea agreement, McLean, a registered sex offender from Minnesota, traveled to Tampa to meet a 14-year-old female with whom he was communicating over the Internet. McLean picked the minor up from her house, brought her to the Greyhound bus station, and purchased two bus tickets to Brownsville, Texas. Upon discovering that the minor was missing, her family contacted law enforcement who determined that McLean and the minor were on a Greyhound bus that had stopped in Tallahassee. Law enforcement officers recovered the minor victim and arrested McLean. McLean and the minor admitted that they had engaged in sex acts on the bus while traveling from Tampa to Tallahassee. 

This case was investigated by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, the Tallahassee Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stacie B. Harris.

It was another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.  

Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Corrigan today sentenced Daniel Robert Gardner (21, Jacksonville) to 10 years in federal prison for receiving child pornography over the Internet. The Court also ordered him to serve a 10-year term of supervision and to register as a sex offender upon his release from prison.  Gardner pleaded guilty on July 28, 2014. 

According to court documents, forensic analyses of Gardner’s computer yielded approximately 2,000 images and 56 videos depicting child pornography. Law enforcement officers also recovered evidence that Gardner had shared his collection of child pornography and had chatted about the images with others. 

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelly S. Karase.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov and click on the tab "other resources."

Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the filing of federal charges against individuals in eight separate cases.  These individuals have been charged with stealing $767,949 in federal benefits to which they were not entitled. The penalty for stealing federal benefits or making false statements is up to 10 years in federal prison per count. These Middle District of Florida cases arose out of Operation November Rain, an operation initiated and overseen by the Social Security Administration - Office of Inspector General with assistance from multiple other federal and local law enforcement agencies.  

These cases were investigated and defendants were apprehended by the joint work of the Social Security Administration – Office of Inspector General, the United States Marshals Service, the United States Secret Service, the Department of Health and Human Services - Office of Inspector General, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, and the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office. These cases will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys throughout the Middle District of Florida, including Dale Campion, Malisa Chokshi, Mac Heavener, Jay Taylor, Robert Bodnar, and Embry Kidd.

An indictment is merely formal charges that a defendant has violated one or more federal criminal laws, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

Operation November Rain Case Summaries

Edna Brown-Powell (58, Orlando) has been charged with theft of government funds.  According to the indictment, from January 2000 until February 2014, Brown-Powell fraudulently received $61,614 in Social Security benefits that were intended for her deceased father.

Larry Hallam (36, Lawtey) has been charged with theft of government funds.  According to the indictment, from September 2011 through September 2013, Hallam fraudulently received over $1,000 in Social Security benefits. 

Claudia Pellum Brooks (64, Baldwin) has been charged with theft of government funds. According to the indictment, between March 1993 and April 2014, Brooks fraudulently received Social Security and Medicaid benefits totaling approximately $208,517.

Kalen Amanda Kennedy (49, Inverness) has been charged with theft of government funds.  According to the indictment, from November 2009 until July 2014, Kennedy received $78,648 in Social Security benefits to which she was not entitled. 

Noel Hernandez (49, Davenport) has been charged with theft of government funds.  According to the indictment, from October 1999 through April 2014, Hernandez received $154,089.00 in Social Security benefits to which he was not entitled.

April Amanda Carter (35, Jacksonville) has been charged with theft of government funds. According to the indictment, between May 2012 and May 2014, Carter received $20,248 in Social Security and Medicaid benefits to which she was not entitled. She has also has been charged with three counts of making a false statement to a government agency. According to court documents, Carter falsely stated to the Social Security Administration that she was unemployed and raising her child on her own, when, as she knew, she was employed and raising her child along with her husband.

Sheila I. Hall Onley (56, Jacksonville) has been charged with theft of government funds.  According to the indictment, from December 2008 to March 2014, Onley fraudulently received $21,681 in Social Security benefits that were intended for her deceased mother.

Essie Mae Dye (75, Jasper) has been charged with theft of government funds.  According to the indictment, from May 1997 to March 2014, Dye fraudulently received $175,842.20 in Social Security benefits that were intended for her deceased mother. 

Orlando, FL – U.S. District Judge Paul G. Byron today sentenced Edward Alan Vadney (23, Winter Haven) to 17 years in federal prison for the attempted sexual enticement of a minor. The Court also ordered Vadney to serve a life term of supervision and to register as a sex offender following his release from prison.   He pleaded guilty on September 4, 2014.

According to court documents, on May 15, 2014, an FBI agent, working in an undercover capacity, discovered an Internet advertisement seeking young girls’ underwear. The agent began corresponding online with the individual; he was later identified as Vadney. During the online conversations, the agent told Vadney that he had two daughters who were ages six and ten. Vadney expressed his interest in meeting and having sex with the children, and arrangements were made to meet at a location in Lake Mary.
The following morning, Vadney traveled from Winter Haven to Lake Mary. When he arrived at the predetermined meeting spot, he was taken into custody. Vadney later admitted that he had traveled to Lake Mary to have sex with the man’s daughters, and that he was going to do it because it was “cool” with the children’s “father.” 

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joseph M. Schuster.

It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Roy B. Dalton, Jr. yesterday sentenced Marco Maurice Heath (36, DeLeon Springs) to 15 years in federal prison for being a felon in possession of firearms. The Court also ordered Heath to forfeit five firearms that he had illegally possessed.   Heath was found guilty during a bench trial before Judge Dalton on August 19, 2014. He was originally indicted on May 7, 2014.

According to court documents, on November 8, 2013, a Volusia County Sheriff’s Office investigator saw Heath riding a bicycle with two long guns across the handlebars. Heath disappeared and was found about 20 minutes later riding the bicycle, but without any firearms. Sheriff’s deputies conducted a search of the area, including a nearby house where Heath had spent the night. During the search of the residence, deputies found five firearms in a bedroom, including a shotgun, a semi-automatic assault rifle, and three handguns. Heath admitted that he had stolen the guns that morning in order to sell them for money.

As a previously convicted felon on state offenses, including multiple felony convictions for possession and trafficking of controlled substances, and two armed robberies, Heath was prohibited from possessing any firearms or ammunition under federal law.

This case was investigated by Volusia County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Bruce S. Ambrose.

This is another case prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program - a nationwide, gun-violence reduction strategy.  United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III, along with Regina Lombardo, Special Agent in Charge, ATF, are coordinating the Project Safe Neighborhoods effort here in the Middle District of Florida in cooperation with federal, state, and local law enforcement officials. It is also a part of ATF’s Frontline Strategy on reducing violent crime in communities.

Orlando, FL – United States District Judge Paul Byron today sentenced Vincent Hudson, a/k/a “Goldie,” (44, Stockton, CA), Patricia Poulson, a/k/a “Moët Diamonds,” (22, Stockton, CA), and Jessica McCrary, a/k/a “Amber Snow” (20, Stockton, CA) for sex trafficking-related offenses. Hudson was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison. McCrary and Poulson were each sentenced to three years’ probation, respectively.
All three individuals pleaded guilty on September 4, 2014. Hudson pleaded guilty to one count of transporting a minor to engage in prostitution and one count of the commission of a felony offense involving a minor when required to register as a sex offender. Poulson and McCrary pleaded guilty to interstate travel with intent to promote an unlawful activity, namely prostitution.

According to their plea agreements, on November 8, 2013, a 16-year-old female, met Hudson at a hotel in Orlando, Florida. Traveling with Hudson were McCrary and Poulson. The minor initially told Hudson that she was a runaway with an active arrest warrant. Hudson promised her a “new identity” if she would join their “team” as a prostitute. The minor victim said that Hudson, Poulson, and McCrary all told her that she would be working as a prostitute and having sex for money in both Louisiana and California. 

The minor victim left Orlando with Hudson, Poulson, and McCrary and they drove to Louisiana. While in Louisiana, the minor worked the streets of Lafayette and New Orleans as a prostitute. All of the money she earned was given to Hudson.

While in Lafayette, Hudson stole an identification card at a tattoo shop belonging to “D.G.,” which became the minor’s new identity. After working in Louisiana for three weeks, the minor took a bus from Lafayette, Louisiana to Stockton, California, where she worked as a prostitute nearly every day until she was arrested for prostitution on December 18, 2013.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Orlando Metropolitan Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David Haas.

It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Tampa, FL - U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announced today that the Middle District of Florida had its strongest financial year ever. In Fiscal Year 2014, which ended September 30th, the Office’s Civil, Criminal, and Asset Forfeiture Divisions collected over $367 million for taxpayers.

The Office’s Civil Division, led by Lacy R. Harwell, recovered $152,950,505 in affirmative civil fraud cases, most alleging health care fraud. In many of these cases, Middle District of Florida Assistant U.S. Attorneys worked closely with attorneys from the Department of Justice Civil Division. The total civil recovery amount was the result of settlements reached in the affirmative civil fraud cases set forth below, as well as an installment payment of approximately $20 million made as part of a settlement in an earlier case (United States ex rel. Hellein v. Wellcare Health Plans).

The Office’s Criminal Division, led by Rachelle DesVaux Bedke and Karen Gable, recovered another $19,705,136 in criminal cases, most of which was in the form of criminal fines, special assessments, and restitution. Providing restitution for the victims of crime is a top priority of the Middle District of Florida.

Finally, the Office’s Asset Forfeiture Division, led by Anita Cream, had its best year ever. Working with its partner agencies, the Middle District of Florida’s Asset Forfeiture Division collected more than $195 million in criminal and civil forfeitures. Depending on the type of case, forfeited assets are deposited into the Department of Justice Assets Forfeiture Fund or the Department of Treasury’s Assets Forfeiture Fund. Almost all of the monies recovered through asset forfeiture in Fiscal Year 2014 will be used to restore funds to crime victims. In addition, approximately $3.5 million in forfeited funds was shared with state and local law enforcement agencies. The Middle District of Florida’s most significant asset forfeiture cases are detailed below.

“Recovering monies from convicted criminals and others who have defrauded the government is critical in enforcing our nation’s laws,” said U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III. “Working in partnership with our law enforcement partners, and other federal, state, and local agencies, our efforts ensure that criminals and others committing fraud are held fully accountable for their offenses. Through these coordinated efforts, we are able to help victims recover from their losses, wherever possible, and replenish public resources.”

U.S. Attorney Bentley further stated, “In Fiscal Year 2014, the budget for our Office was approximately $23 million. That means that for every dollar we spent, the Assistant U.S. Attorneys working here recovered about $16.”

Attorney General Eric Holder announced today that the Justice Department collected $24.7 billion in civil and criminal actions in the fiscal year ending September 30, 2014. The more than $24 billion in collections in FY 2014 represents nearly eight and a half times the appropriated $2.91 billion budget for the 94 U.S. Attorney’s offices and the main litigating divisions in that same period.

“Every day, the Justice Department’s federal prosecutors and trial attorneys work hard to protect our citizens, to safeguard precious taxpayer resources, and to provide a valuable return on investment to the American people,” said Attorney General Holder.  “Their diligent efforts are enabling us to achieve justice and recoup losses in virtually every sector of the U.S. economy. And this result shows the fruits of the Justice Department’s tireless work in enforcing federal laws; in protecting the American people from violent crime, national security threats, discrimination, exploitation, and abuse; and in holding financial institutions accountable for their roles in causing the 2008 financial crisis.”  

The U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, along with the Department’s litigating divisions, are responsible for enforcing and collecting civil and criminal debts owed to the U.S. and criminal debts owed to federal crime victims. The law requires defendants to pay restitution to victims of certain federal crimes who have suffered a physical injury or financial loss. While restitution is paid to the victim, criminal fines and felony assessments are paid to the Department’s Crime Victims’ Fund, which distributes the funds to state victim compensation and victim assistance programs.

The largest civil collections were from affirmative civil enforcement cases, in which the United States recovered government money lost to fraud or other misconduct or collected fines imposed on individuals and/or corporations for violations of federal health, safety, civil rights, or environmental laws. In addition, civil debts were collected on behalf of several federal agencies, including the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Internal Revenue Service, the Small Business Administration and the Department of Education.

Middle District of Florida Affirmative Case Highlights

United States ex rel. Baklid-Kunz v. Halifax Hospital

This whistleblower case was filed under the False Claims Act by a management hospital employee who alleged that her hospital had implemented compensation agreements with its employee physicians that violated federal law. Specifically, the whistleblower contended that the hospital had created a staffing company to employ the majority of hospital employees, and had paid the staffing company an amount equal to the exact cost of the employees= salary and benefits. In addition to a base salary, physicians also received a bonus based upon a percentage of their billings and, in some instances, upon the hospital=s profits from particular departments. These compensation agreements allegedly violated the Stark Act. The whistleblower also alleged that the defendant’s neurosurgery practice group had performed medically unnecessary spine surgery procedures that were billed to Medicare, and also had upcoded its bills for patient admissions that should have been properly billed at a lower level of service. The USAO/MDFL intervened on the Stark Act claims and filed its own complaint to address those issues.  The whistleblower pursued the medical necessity and upcoding claims on her own. The Court granted our motion for partial summary judgment on the Stark claims and set the case for trial in March 2014. On the morning trial was to commence, after months of difficult negotiations over the defendant’s claimed inability to pay, the government settled the Stark Act claims for $85 million. At the time it was announced, this was the largest civil settlement ever reached under that statute. With the government’s consent, the whistleblower subsequently settled the medical necessity and upcoding claims for $1 million. 

United States ex rel. Fuentes et al.v. Genzyme Corp.

Genzyme Corp. manufactures a product known as Seprafilm, which is approved by the FDA to prevent adhesions from forming during surgeries. Two former Genzyme employees filed a complaint under the False Claims Act alleging that Genzyme had illegally promoted off label use of the product in unapproved slurry form. Shortly thereafter, a second case was filed in the MDFL by a third whistleblower, making virtually identical allegations against Genzyme. Parallel proceedings were opened in response to the complaints and the USAO/MDFL comprehensively investigated the prevalence of Genzyme’s sales practices at a number of hospitals around the country. The investigation corroborated the whistleblowers’ allegations, and we confronted the defendant with our findings.  Settlement negotiations led to an agreement that resolved the civil claims in these cases for $22.8 million. 

United States ex rel. Wells v. Baptist Health System, et al.

          A former administrator of the Baptist Health hospital chain filed a complaint against the hospital under the False Claims Act, claiming that a neurologist employed by the hospital intentionally misdiagnosed his patients with various neurological disorders and then billed government healthcare programs for medically unnecessary services, tests, and treatments. In addition, she alleged that the defendant hospital chain did not return overpayments it had received as a result of the misdiagnoses, after discovering the neurologist’s scheme. The USAO/MDFL investigated these allegations thoroughly and corroborated them. Settlement discussions led to an agreement that resolved our civil claims against the hospital for $2.5 million, amounting to treble damages on the most egregious claims in question, and double damages on the rest. Our claims against the defendant neurologist, Dr. Sean Orr, remain pending.

United States ex rel. Stone v. Hospice of the Comforter

This case was filed by a former employee of the defendant hospice provider, who alleged that the hospice agency had submitted claims for reimbursement of hospice services rendered to patients that did not qualify for the services. To be reimbursed by Medicare, a hospice patient must suffer from a terminal condition that will result in death within six months of diagnosis. The whistleblower contended that the provider had offered hospice care to patients for periods far exceeding six months, often for years. After a lengthy investigation, the USAO/MDFL negotiated an agreement in principle with the defendant to resolve our claims for $3 million, which was approved by the Department of Justice. The whistleblower objected to the reasonableness of the settlement, but the Court overruled the objection and upheld the agreement after an evidentiary hearing. 

United States ex rel. Valenti v. Tai Shan Golden Gain Aluminum Products, Inc.

This case was filed by the CEO of an exporter of aluminum extrusion products, who alleged that a number of individuals and entities had avoided paying antidumping and countervailing duties owed on aluminum extrusions by misrepresenting the country of origin for the products as Malaysia, rather than the People’s Republic of China. The USAO/MDFL investigation into these allegations confirmed them as to five of the defendants (Robert Wingfield, Northeastern Aluminum Corporation, William Ma, Southeastern Aluminum Products, Basco Manufacturing Company, Waterfall Group, LLC, and C.R. Laurence Co.), as well as revealed other deceptive practices. The USAO/MDFL intervened and filed our own complaint against these five defendants, and declined to pursue the claims against the rest of the named defendants. Settlement discussions were eventually opened with one defendant, Basco Manufacturing Company, which led to a resolution that will pay the government $1.1 million on the claims against this exporter. This represents a recovery of double damages for the United States. The litigation over our claims against the other four defendants remains pending.

United States ex rel. Thomas v. Sarasota Pain Associates, et al.

Two former employees of a Sarasota pain management clinic filed a whistleblower complaint that alleged the clinic had systematically billed Medicare for services not rendered, and had sought reimbursement for other procedures as though they were performed by a physician, when in fact they had been performed by a registered nurse.  The whistleblowers further alleged that the defendant had upcoded bills for reimbursement of evaluation and management services by several levels of care. After investigating these claims, the USAO/MDFL intervened in the case and actively litigated it against the clinic and its proprietor, Dr. Steven Chun. The case was settled at mediation for $750,000, which amounted to a recovery of roughly double the Government’s claimed single damages.

United States ex rel. Lovell v. Sharma

This case was filed by a former office manager of a local vascular surgeon, Dr. Ravi Sharma. The whistleblower alleged that she had been instructed to perform injection procedures on patients without a supervising doctor present, even though she had no medical training. She also alleged that the defendant billed Medicare for reimbursement of these injections as though he had performed them. In addition, she claimed that the defendant had submitted false claims for services rendered at his weight loss center. The whistleblower stated that she had exclusively seen patients at the center, and that the defendant had never gone into the facility, but that he nonetheless had billed her sessions with patients as office visits with a physician. The USAO/MDFL investigated these claims and corroborated them, ultimately negotiating a settlement that paid the government $400,000 (double the amount of damages suffered as a result of the conduct in question).

Middle District of Florida Asset Forfeiture Case Highlights

United States v. Assets Described in Attachment A (262 gold bars, etc.)

As detailed in the civil forfeiture complaint, a Spanish citizen based in Spain and Panama, operated Evolution Market Group (EMG), which did business as FinanzasForex. FinanzasForex was an on-line multi-layer marketing scheme that purported to provide an investment opportunity in the Foreign Exchange (Forex) market.  However, only a small portion of the money received from investors was invested in Forex, and those investments resulted in losses. Instead, investor money was used to pay back prior investors, and to support the Orlando-based associates’ lifestyles and to pay their business expenses, including the use of $1 million in investor funds to purchase luxury vehicles and more than $50 million to pay off properties they owned. Due to the quick work of law enforcement, more than $180 million in assets purchased or funded with investor funds were seized, including gold bars valued at over $100 million, luxury vehicles, and bank accounts. 

The gold bars were purchased with investor funds that had previously been held in a bank account controlled by a business in Oregon that specialized in brokering precious metal purchases. The Oregon company, for a large fee, had allowed its accounts to be used to accept FinanzasForex investor payments and transfer money back to investors. Because of the voluminous number of incoming deposits by foreign investors into its accounts, banks ceased doing business with the company. As a result, in order to get the funds back to Cardona, the Oregon company purchased 294 gold bars with the funds in its accounts. In order to make some additional money from the transaction, the company then attempted to obtain a 20% fee to deliver the gold bars to Cardona. When the United States liquidated the gold bars, they were sold on the open market.

The United States has hired a claims administrator to help distribute the forfeited funds back to the victims of the fraud. It is believed that there are more than 15,000 victims located in over 50 countries.

United States v. David Smith

In fiscal year 2014, we completed the criminal forfeiture of $1,662,715 from David Smith. Smith operated four successive “investment clubs” in which he claimed investors’ funds would be used to engage in foreign currency trading. In 2005, Smith established Overseas Locket International Corporation in Panama and OLINT Corporation in Jamaica. In April 2006, Jamaican authorities issued a cease and desist order which barred Smith from obtaining new clients. Within weeks, Smith relocated and established two new companies, OLINT TCI and TCI FX Traders. He told investors that he traded on two foreign currency platforms, Oanda in Canada and New York, and I-Trade in Lake Mary, Florida. Evidence established that Smith had a little more than $100,000 in an account at Oanda. Smith deposited over $128 million into 4 trading accounts at I-Trade, but he engaged in little to no trading with those accounts. Most of the money was laundered through accounts opened by co-conspirators at other financial institutions, then wired back to Smith as he needed it to pay investors. Smith pleaded guilty to a wire fraud conspiracy and multiple money laundering violations. In prior years, we had criminally forfeited $3,695,905 from another trading account and obtained a $50,000 payment towards the $128 million forfeiture money judgment.

United States v. Gene Tyrell

According to court documents, Gene Tyrell and his co-defendants participated in an $18.4 million fraud scheme from late 1996 through August 2000, utilizing a succession of unregistered securities offerings to defraud hundreds of investors. The defendants were convicted and sentenced in 2005 for their roles in the fraud scheme. In FY 2013, we completed the forfeiture of Tyrell’s interest in Woodbridge International, Inc., and Woodbridge International Management, LLC, companies created by Tyrell and used by him and his co-defendants in unregistered fraudulent securities offerings that post-dated the fraud charged in the original indictment. More than a decade after his indictment, we pursued the forfeiture of these companies as substitute assets because, by virtue of their ownership, the companies were entitled to approximately $1 million in proceeds from the sale of that stock. When he was sentenced on September 22, 2005, Tyrell was ordered to serve 136 months’ imprisonment, and among other financial penalties, a $2.5 million forfeiture money judgment was included in his Judgment. By his own admission, Tyrell had small bank balances, minimal liquid assets, and significant debt; consequently, there did not appear to be any assets to forfeit. 

However, after Tyrell’s sentencing the United States was contacted by an individual interested in purchasing shares of stock in iCrossing, Inc. held by the Woodbridge entities, indicating that Gene A. Tyrell was the President of Woodbridge.  Following up on that tip, the United States learned that a law firm in Arizona was handling the sale of iCrossing to Hearst. After contacting the law firm, the United States confirmed that, according to the Common Stock Ledger, Tyrell, through the Woodbridge entities, had purchased three stock certificates (for a total of nearly 118,000 shares) for more than $350,000, and that those shares were worth approximately $1 million when acquired by Hearst. Therefore, the United States forfeited the Woodbridge entities in order to take title to the stock. 

United States v. Paul Robert Gunter, et al.
On March 10, 2009, a federal grand jury returned a superseding indictment charging Paul Robert Gunter, Zibiah Joy Gunter, Lawrence S. Hartman, Richard Sinclair Pope, Simon Andrew Odoni, Roger Lee Shoss, and Nicolette Loisel with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering, and other substantive counts of money laundering, mail fraud, and wire fraud. In the superseding indictment, the government provided the conspirators with notice of our intent to seek forfeiture. According to the evidence and testimony presented at trial, from at least as early as July 2004 through at least March 13, 2008, Gunter, Odoni, Pope, and others engaged in a sophisticated investment fraud and money laundering scheme in which worthless stock in hijacked dormant, publicly-traded companies in the United States was sold to victim-investors, primarily in the United Kingdom. The scheme used boiler room telemarketers, mostly in Spain, who employed high pressure and misleading sales techniques. The victim-investors wired more than $127 million to Gunter's bank accounts in the Middle District of Florida. The conspirators bilked victim-investors out of another $10 million via a FOREX currency trading scheme, which also utilized the boiler rooms in Spain. On April 19, 2013, Paul Gunter and Simon Odoni were found guilty by a federal jury following a 19-day trial. Specifically, the jury returned verdicts of guilty on three counts of conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering, as well as 19 counts of mail and wire fraud, and 14 counts of money laundering. Prior to trial, on March 10, 2011, Richard Pope pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud. Pope cooperated with the government and testified at trial.
In addition to sentencing the defendants to serve terms of imprisonment, the Court ordered all three individuals to forfeit their interests in real property and bank accounts in the U.S. and abroad, an airplane, vessels, and vehicles purchased with proceeds of the fraud scheme and imposed forfeiture money judgments against them. As part of the investigation, federal agents seized nearly $5 million in domestic bank accounts. At the sentencing hearing, the court agreed with the government that entry of an order of restitution would be impracticable because considerable additional resources were needed to notify potential victims and determine the amount of their losses; therefore, the court agreed that the United States should be permitted to use forfeited funds to compensate victims through the remission process. The United States has retained a claims administrator to assist in this process. The last defendant to be sentenced was Lawrence S. Hartman, an American lawyer who was residing in Costa Rica, who conspired with Gunter, Odoni, Pope and others. In May 2013, Hartman was arrested on an immigration violation by Nicaraguan authorities. After being expelled and deported from Nicaragua, Hartman entered a guilty plea and was sentenced to 10 years in prison. Pursuant to his plea agreement, he has consented to the forfeiture of significant assets and has agreed to provide assistance in locating and liquidating those assets. Because most of his assets are in foreign countries, the forfeiture process is likely to be lengthy. Funds obtained from the forfeiture of his assets will also be distributed by the claims administrator. 
In a related trial that took place in May 2012, American lawyers Roger Lee Shoss and Nicolette Loisel were convicted of one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with their participation in the corporate identity theft aspect of the scheme. A $800,000 forfeiture money judgment was entered against both defendants and Shoss’s home is the subject of a Final Order of Forfeiture.       

United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III, along with Michelle S. Klimt, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation and United States Marshal William Berger, today announce the distribution of more than $400,000 of criminally forfeited funds to seven law enforcement agencies for their participation in the successful federal prosecution of Dennis Devlin.  Pursuant to the Department of Justice Equitable Sharing Program, the funds were distributed to the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office, the Daytona Beach Police Department, the South Daytona Beach Police Department, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Florida Department of Financial Services, the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office, and the Daytona Beach Shores Public Safety Department. The presentation of funds took place today at the Volusia County Emergency Operations Center in Daytona Beach.

In July 2011, Dennis Brian Devlin, of Daytona Beach, was sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for sexually exploiting a minor.  According to court documents, on more than one occasion in January 2011, Devlin persuaded a 13-year-old child to engage in sexually explicit conduct at the Desert Inn in Daytona Beach.  He then used an iPhone and video camera, to take sexually explicit pictures and video of the child.  On February 2, 2011, agents executed a federal search warrant at the Desert Inn where Devlin lived and found several iPhones and numerous CDs and DVDs concealed in the ceiling of Devlin's bathroom that contained sexually explicit images of the child and other images depicting child pornography.

As part of Devlin's sentence, the court ordered Devlin to forfeit his interest in the Desert Inn, because he had used the hotel to facilitate the crimes for which he was convicted.  The forfeited funds were obtained from the sale of the Desert Inn.  

The titled owner of the Desert Inn, Deslin Hotels, Inc., filed a claim to contest the forfeiture of the hotel because it alleged that Devlin did not have an interest in the hotel.  After several months of litigation, a settlement was reached wherein Deslin Hotels, Inc. conceded to the forfeiture of $1,552,588.62, which represents Devlin's interest in the proceeds obtained from the recent sale of the Desert Inn.

Under federal forfeiture laws, criminals can be stripped of assets that were used illegally or purchased with proceeds of illegal activity.  The Asset Forfeiture Program takes the profit out of crime and the Equitable Sharing Program provides crime fighting resources to state and local law enforcement.  Asset forfeiture and equitable sharing are valuable law enforcement tools that send a clear message that crime does not pay.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Karen Gable.  The forfeitures were handled by Assistant United States Attorney Nicole M. Andrejko. The U.S. Marshals Service was responsible for depositing and distributing the forfeited funds.
The various law enforcement agencies involved provided critical assistance during the investigation, including identifying, locating, and interviewing victims, executing federal search warrants, and processing the evidence in the case.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Orlando, FL – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that a federal jury has found Joseph Parrott (31, Orlando) guilty of aiming the beam of a laser pointer at an aircraft in the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States. Parrott faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for February 2, 2015.    Parrott was indicted on September 3, 2014.

According to testimony presented at trial, at approximately 3:00 a.m. on July 2, 2014, an Orange County Sheriff’s Office helicopter was responding to an attempted burglary in Orlando near East Colonial Drive.  While flying to the scene, a bright green light, later determined to be a laser beam, repeatedly illuminated the helicopter’s cockpit.  Deputies in the helicopter traced the source of the laser beam to a car on East Colonial Drive. Deputies on the ground pulled the car over. Evidence at trial proved that Parrott, a passenger in the car, knowingly aimed the laser beam at the helicopter at least four times.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Christopher LaForgia and Embry J. Kidd.

Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard today sentenced Orlando Justino Gomez (55, Middleburg) to 11 years and 3 months in federal prison for possessing child pornography. The court also ordered him to serve a seven-year term of supervision upon completion of his prison sentence.  Gomez, who is already a registered sexual predator as the result of a prior state conviction for attempted capital sexual battery, was also ordered to register as a sexual offender pursuant to federal law. He pleaded guilty on July 18, 2014.

According to court documents and evidence presented at the sentencing hearing, on June 10, 2014, Gomez was found to be in possession of multiple images depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Diidri Robinson.

It was another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.  

Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Marcia M. Howard today sentenced Abass Issa to 38 months in federal prison and Antoun Arbaji to 24 months in federal prison for theft of government property. The court also ordered each to serve a three-year term of supervision following their incarceration, and to repay the United States a total of $1,566,819.45 in restitution.  Arbaji and Issa pleaded guilty on May 27, 2014, and June 26, 2014, respectively.

According to court documents, Arbaji owned and operated a Fina Express convenience store in Green Cove Springs.  Issa owned and operated V&J Stores, Inc., another convenience store in Green Cove Springs.  Beginning in 2011, Issa began obtaining known fraudulent IRS refund checks from a source in Tampa. The checks were either in the form of United States Treasury checks or tax refund anticipation loans. Many of the refund checks were issued in the names of deceased individuals, though some were issued in the names of living taxpayers. Over 200 stolen identities were involved in the scheme.

After Issa obtained the checks in bulk from his source in Tampa, he then located individuals, like Arbaji, to cash the checks in exchange for a fee. All proceeds were given to Issa, who kept a portion, and then returned the remainder to his Tampa source. During 2011, Issa and Arbaji used Arbaji’s bank account to cash $1,512,607 in fraudulent United States Treasury checks and $406,795 in fraudulent refund anticipation loans. Prior to indictment, the United States seized $352,584 from Arbaji’s bank account.   

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service—Criminal Investigation, the United States Secret Service, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mac D. Heavener, III.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announced today that Javier Guerrero Molina (age 34, Mexico) has pleaded guilty to attempting to transport a minor child from Las Vegas to Jacksonville with the intent that the child engage in sexual activity with him.  Molina is a citizen of Mexico, and an immigration detainer has been placed on him.  He faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 10 years, up to a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.  Molina was arrested on May 30, 2014, at the Jacksonville International Airport, and he has been in custody since that time.    

According to court documents, on May 29, 2014, officers with the Jacksonville Aviation Authority Police Department (JAAPD) received a telephone call from an individual who advised that a female child had disappeared from her home in Las Vegas and was believed to be traveling by air to Jacksonville.  JAAPD officers learned that the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) had made a “missing persons” entry regarding a 14-year old girl with the same name.  A check of airline manifests confirmed that this child was listed as a passenger on board a flight from Las Vegas to Jacksonville, with a connection in Charlotte, North Carolina.  JAAPD coordinated with officers with the Charlotte-Mecklenberg Police Department (CMPD), who intercepted the child at the Charlotte International Airport and took her into protective custody.  The child had been scheduled to board a flight from Charlotte to Jacksonville that was due to arrive shortly after midnight on May 30, 2014.

As the expected arrival time for the Jacksonville flight approached, a JAAPD officer observed Javier Guerrero Molina in a waiting area in the Jacksonville International Airport lobby. When asked by the officer, Molina advised that he was there to meet a passenger. Molina was subsequently detained.

During an interview, Molina admitted that he had entered the United States in 1999 or 2000 by paying a smuggler $700 to help him cross the border on foot near Laredo, Texas.  Molina stated that he had previously engaged in sexual activity with the child in Jacksonville, before she and her family moved to Las Vegas. He also stated that he had sent the child money to pay for a one-way airline ticket from Las Vegas to Jacksonville, and that he expected their sexual relationship to continue when the child returned to Jacksonville.      

This case was investigated by the Jacksonville Aviation Authority Police Department, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (Jacksonville and Charlotte, North Carolina), the Charlotte-Mecklenberg Police Department, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations,  and the Jacksonville State Attorney’s Office.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Arnold Bernard Conrad, Jr. (51, Jacksonville) has pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography.  He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and life term of supervised release.  A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to court documents, a detective from the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office began an undercover operation to identify persons using a particular Internet file sharing program to obtain and share child pornography.  During the investigation, the detective determined that Conrad was offering images of child pornography for distribution. 

On December 15, 2011, a search warrant was executed at Conrad’s residence and two laptops and three external hard drives were seized.  During an interview, Conrad stated, among other things, that the age of the youngest child in any of the downloaded child pornography was “maybe six.”  Subsequent forensic analyses revealed that the computer media contained 504 images and 145 videos depicting child pornography.       

This case was investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff=s Office and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell has sentenced Jefferson Lee Kirkland (68, Zolfo Springs) to eight years and one month in federal prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and to distribute methamphetamine.  He pleaded guilty on August 12, 2014.

According to court documents, on March 27, 2014, Kirkland sold a pound of methamphetamine to a confidential source working for DEA.  He was arrested later that day.  During a search of Kirkland’s residence agents found an additional 5.5 ounces of methamphetamine, a .22 caliber handgun, and a shotgun.  Kirkland identified his source of supply as his co-defendant, Jerry Mendez.  Agents then arrested Mendez and executed a search warrant at his residence.  Inside, they found one pound of pure methamphetamine in a kitchen freezer and a smaller amount of methamphetamine in a bedroom.  They also found approximately 100 grams of cocaine powder, $12,400 in currency, and 3 handguns with ammunition inside the home.  Mendez later admitted to having another 3 pounds of methamphetamine in the attic of his residence, which the agents found and seized.  On September 23, 2014, Mendez pleaded guilty to the same charge as Kirkland.  He is scheduled to be sentenced on December 18, 2014.  The firearms and cash seized during the course of the investigation have been administratively forfeited. 

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Hardee County Sheriff’s Office.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kathy J.M. Peluso.

Ocala, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III, announces that Luis Rafael Infantes (21, Elizabethtown, KY) has pleaded guilty to theft of government property.  He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison.  A sentencing date has not yet been set.

Infantes’s father, Pedro Luis Infantes, previously entered a guilty plea to the same charge on October 21, 2014.  His sentencing date has been scheduled for January 22, 2015. 

According to the plea agreement, on July 11, 2014, Infantes and his father unwittingly met with a confidential source who was working in cooperation with law enforcement.  Infantes and his father believed that the source had connections to potential buyers affiliated with Mexican drug trafficking organizations.  Ultimately, Infantes and his father negotiated a sale price of $153,500 for 17 military-grade, thermal- imaging monoculars, rifle cleaning kits, and other assorted military equipment that had been stolen from the government.

When the father later attempted to complete the transaction, he was arrested and interviewed by the FBI.  The father provided false statements to agents about how he had acquired the military items and how the serial numbers on the items had been removed.  Pedro Luis Infantes stated that he had purchased the equipment in that condition at assorted gun shows.  In reality, Luis Rafael Infantes, an active-duty supply sergeant for the United States Army, had stolen the items from the Fort Knox military installation. 

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Bodnar, Jr.

Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington has sentenced Shon Erik Scott (29, Seffner) to 15 years and 8 months in federal prison for being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.  Scott pleaded guilty on June 10, 2014.

According to court documents, on October 12, 2013, officers from the Tampa Police Department arrested Scott at an apartment complex in Tampa.  During their encounter, Scott resisted arrest and threw a loaded firearm that had been concealed in his waistband. Incident to his arrest, a distribution amount of 3,4-Methylenedioxymethcathinone, a controlled substance, was found in his possession.  At the time, Scott was a previously convicted felon, and was therefore prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition under federal law.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the Tampa Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joseph W. Swanson. 

This is another case prosecuted as a part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program - a nationwide, gun-violence reduction strategy. United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III, along with ATF Special Agent in Charge Regina Lombardo, is coordinating the Project Safe Neighborhoods effort here in the Middle District of Florida in cooperation with federal, state, and local law enforcement officials. It is also a part of ATF’s Frontline Strategy to prevent violent crime in communities.

Ocala, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Terry Scott Hilliard II (29, Ocala) has pleaded guilty to receipt and distribution of child pornography.  He faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 5 years, up to a maximum sentence of 20 years, in federal prison.  A sentencing hearing has not yet been set.     

According to the plea agreement, Hilliard was arrested by federal agents on July 8, 2014, during the execution of a search warrant at his Ocala residence.  The search warrant was executed in connection with an online investigation into persons receiving and distributing images of children engaged in sexually explicit conduct.  Hilliard admitted to the agents that he had been receiving and distributing these types of images for at least a year.  A review of his email account revealed numerous videos and photographs of children under the age of 12 engaged in sexually explicit conduct. 

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Bodnar, Jr.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Orlando, FL – U.S. District Judge Paul G. Byron today sentenced Charles Keith Rolfe (60, Heyburn, Idaho) to 20 years in federal prison for distributing child pornography.  The Court also ordered Rolfe to serve a lifetime term of supervised release and to register as a sex offender after he completes his prison sentence.  A restitution hearing for his victims is scheduled for January 13, 2015. Rolfe pleaded guilty on June 27, 2014.

According to court documents, in the summer of 2013, Rolfe met an Orlando man, William Edward Osman, on an online social networking site.  The two men soon began trading images of child pornography via a Mobile Messaging Application (“MMA”).  Osman also told Rolfe that he had molested his one-year-old daughter.

On October 15, 2013, special agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) arrested Osman on charges related to the sexual exploitation of children.  Agents seized his cell phone and identified Rolfe as one of the men with whom Osman had been electronically trading child pornography.  After assuming Osman’s online identity, agents communicated with Rolfe in an undercover capacity.  On February 28, 2014, Rolfe sent the undercover agents at least three videos containing images of child pornography via the MMA on his cell phone.  He also told the agents that he had attempted to molest his own five-year-old daughter when his wife was away, and that he was grooming his daughter for potential future sexual abuse. 

Rolfe was arrested on April 3, 2014.  A subsequent search of his home and cell phones revealed that Rolfe possessed almost 900 images of child pornography, many of which depicted children under the age of 12.
On September 3, 2014, Osman was sentenced to 60 years in federal prison for the production, distribution, and possession of child pornography.

"Crimes against our children will not be tolerated," said Susan L. McCormick, special agent in charge of HSI Tampa. "As a result of our collaboration with HSI Boise, and the investigative work of our agents here at home, this child predator can no longer victimize innocent children.”

This case was investigated by United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations.  It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Joseph M. Schuster.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge James S. Moody, Jr. has sentenced Howayda Hamdan to seven years and six months in federal prison for engaging in a conspiracy to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.  As part of her sentence, the court also entered a money judgment in the amount of $1,168,858.11, the proceeds of the conspiracy. Hamdan pleaded guilty on August 21, 2014.

According to court documents, from January 2011 to April 20, 2011, while working as a personal banker for Regions Bank, Hamdan opened 292 bank accounts using 146 stolen identities.  These accounts were opened for the sole purpose of laundering fraudulently obtained federal income tax refund checks that were acquired using the stolen identities of another 219 unknowing victims. 

Hamdan’s co-conspirators, Riad Sulaiman, Nedal Ahmad, and Khaldoun Khalil Khawaja, owned and operated businesses where they knowingly negotiated fraudulently obtained tax refund checks.  The co-conspirators brought the fraudulently obtained Treasury checks to Hamdan so they could be deposited and the proceeds withdrawn. Many of these checks were issued in the names of deceased individuals.

Hamdan needed means of identification, including names and Social Security numbers, to open the accounts at Regions Bank.  Co-conspirator Dana Brown, a police officer, provided printouts from DAVID, Florida’s driver’s license database.  The printouts contained the personally identifiable information (PII) required to open the bogus bank accounts.  Since the victims of the tax filing scheme were often deceased, lived outside Florida, and/or were unknown to Hamdan and her co-conspirators, the stolen identities used to open the bank accounts were different, although similar in name, than the stolen identities used by the tax filers to obtain the tax refunds.

Once Hamdan deposited the fraudulently obtained Treasury checks, she facilitated the distribution of the proceeds to her co-conspirators, including her husband, Hicham El Faoutih.  In May 2011, agents searched Hamdan’s residence.  Among other things, they recovered $81,460.00 in cash (still inside a Regions Bank bag and wrapped with bank wrappers); three fraudulently obtained Treasury checks; a ledger containing hundreds of names and Social Security numbers; and stolen identities that had been provided by Brown.

In total, Hamdan facilitated the deposit or receipt of $1,168,858.11 in fraudulently obtained tax refunds.  The government has also identified more than 400 victims whose identities were stolen during the course of Hamdan’s activities.

The co-conspirators in this case were previously prosecuted and sentenced. In July 2014, Hicham El Faoutih was sentenced to 15 months in federal prison.  Nedal Ahmad was sentenced to 51 months in federal prison in June 2013. In June 2012, Ocala Police officer Dana Brown was sentenced to six years and five months in federal prison. In December 2011, Riad Sulaiman was sentenced in the Southern District of Florida to 41 months in federal prison. In August 2013, Khaldoun Khalil Khawaja was sentenced in the Western District of Virginia to 70 months in federal prison; this sentence is being served concurrent to a 37-month sentence imposed in April 2012 in the Middle District of Florida case.

This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service, the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mandy Riedel.

Orlando, FL – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Donald Ray Babb (58, Merritt Island) and Ralph Victor Ruth (61, Melbourne) have pleaded guilty to an Information charging them with conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Each faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set. The Information also notifies Babb and Ruth that the United States is seeking a money judgment in the amount of $18,731,125.58 and the forfeiture of their interest in the following properties: 422 Waterside Drive, Merritt Island, FL; 3502 Tipperary Drive, Merritt Island, FL; 3661 Turtle Mound Road, Melbourne, FL; 312 Sycamore Circle, Warne, NC; and 3498 NC Highway 60, Murphy, NC. 

According to court documents, between June 2006 and December 2013, Babb and Ruth orchestrated a scheme in Brevard County that defrauded approximately 181 investors out of $18 million. Doing business as Southeast Mutual Insurance and Investment, LLC, Capstar Industries, LLC, and First Merchant Capital, LLC, Babb and Ruth falsely represented their businesses as licensed financial institutions whose deposits were insured by the FDIC. Using these entities, they advertised risk-free Certificates of Deposit (CD) investment opportunities that yielded high rates of return. However, neither Babb nor Ruth ever purchased a CD for an investor.  Instead, they used the money to make payments to earlier investors in the scheme, and to purchase real estate and other luxury items for themselves.

This case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, the Florida Office of Financial Regulation, and the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David Haas.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States District Judge Marcia Morales Howard has sentenced Lucas Michael Chansler (31, St. Johns) to 105 years in federal prison for engaging in an extortion scheme to produce child pornography.  On August 13, 2014, Chansler pleaded guilty to nine counts of producing child pornography. 

According to court documents, from 2007 and continuing until January 2010, Chansler transmitted threatening communications to hundreds of girls over the Internet.  He transmitted these threats with the intent to extort photographs and webcam videos showing the victims exposing themselves and engaging in sexually explicit conduct.  Chansler pretended to be a friend, acquaintance, or admirer of the victims on various social networking websites. 

After gaining some measure of trust from a particular child, Chansler would invite her to engage in a live video chat and later would ask her to expose herself.  Unbeknownst to the child, he was recording the video session. Chansler often enticed his victims to expose themselves by showing a streaming video of a minor male exposing himself or engaging in masturbation.  If a victim did expose herself, he recorded it and then later sent it to her over the Internet.  Chansler would then demand additional and more graphic images or webcam videos.  He would inform the child that if she did not comply, he would post the images and videos online, or send them to her family and friends. 

Using information received from the parents of one victim and working with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), agents were able to identify Chansler and locate his residence.  A federal search warrant was executed at the residence on January 8, 2010.

During an interview, Chansler stated that that he used social networking sites to meet girls who ranged in age from 13 to 18.  He stated that he targeted underage girls because adult women were “too smart” to fall for his scheme. 

Forensic analyses of Chansler's computer media revealed hundreds of folders labeled with the name of each child victim.  These folders contained personal information specific to the victims, as well as related chat logs and videos or digital photos.  Many of the chat logs contained the threats Chansler had made to the children.  In several of the videos, the victims are seen crying and pleading with Chansler.  In total, he had approximately 80,000 images and videos in his possession. 

According to court testimony, Chansler targeted 350 child victims in 26 different states throughout the U.S., three Canadian provinces, and the United Kingdom, 106 of which have been positively identified.  According to NCMEC, in terms of number of victims, this case is the largest “sextortion” case prosecuted to date in the United States. 

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the Florida Attorney General's Office, the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office, and numerous other agencies working in Internet Crimes Against Children (“ICAC”) task forces across the United States and Canada.  It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

“Child predators, such as Chansler, are using increasingly devious techniques to lure and exploit innocent children,” said U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III.  “Our Office will continue to work with law enforcement to investigate and prosecute these cases.  Protecting vulnerable victims, such as children, is a top priority of our Office.  For years, we have been at the forefront in the country in prosecuting federal crimes against children.”

It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims.  For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc.

Tampa, Florida– U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven has sentenced Michael C. Vella (36, Riverview) to 30 years in federal prison for producing child pornography. He pleaded guilty on June 20, 2014.

According to the plea agreement, a 16-year-old female reported to law enforcement that Vella had been forcing her to have sex with him since the middle of 2012. She also disclosed that Vella had, on at least one occasion, used his laptop computer to record their encounter. The video was recorded in a hotel room when he transported the victim to the Orlando area.  At the time the arrest warrant was issued, Vella was deployed to Afghanistan as a Department of Defense contractor.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stacie B. Harris.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.  Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge James S. Moody, Jr. today sentenced Ricardo Martinez (34, Tampa) to five years and ten months in federal prison for access device fraud and aggravated identity theft. He was also ordered to pay restitution to the companies defrauded by his scheme. Martinez pleaded guilty on July 29, 2014.

According to court documents, Martinez, along with others, obtained stolen credit card numbers that were then used to create counterfeit or cloned credit cards.  The true owners of the credit card accounts remained in possession of the real credit cards, so they were not known to be stolen or reported as stolen.
Martinez and others made numerous purchases, including gift cards, at area Wal-Mart locations. He also used the cloned credit cards to obtain cash advances from the Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Tampa.  

This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the Clearwater Police Department, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, the Ocala Police Department, and the Seminole Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelley Howard-Allen.

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven today sentenced Sami Osmakac (27, Pinellas Park) to 40 years in federal prison for the attempted use of weapons of mass destruction, and possession of a fully automatic firearm. The court also ordered Osmakac to forfeit property that he used to facilitate the offense, including the vehicle used on the night of his arrest. 

Osmakac was indicted on February 2, 2012. A federal jury found him guilty on June 10, 2014.

“This case represents another victory in our fight against terrorism,” said U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III. “Our success here is due, in part, to assistance from the Muslim community, which brought this defendant’s violent intentions to the attention of law enforcement.”

According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, on January 7, 2012, Osmakac attempted to use weapons of mass destruction, including a car bomb, grenades, and a suicide explosive, at two locations in the Tampa Bay area. Specifically, his intended targets were MacDinton’s Irish Pub and the Seminole Hard Rock Casino. Additionally, on January 7, 2012, Osmakac possessed a machinegun without the firearm being registered to him in the National Firearm Registration and Transfer Record.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sara C. Sweeney and Trial Attorney Clement McGovern from the National Security Division at the Department of Justice.

Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven today sentenced Erica Lambert (31, Tampa) to four years and two months in federal prison for conspiracy to defraud the United States Treasury, and to commit wire fraud in connection with filing fraudulent tax returns.  She was also ordered to pay restitution to the IRS in the amount of $499,923. Lambert pleaded guilty on July 25, 2014.

According to court documents, Lambert, along with others, electronically filed tax returns using stolen and fraudulently obtained means of identification. Lambert and her co-conspirators kept track of the fraudulent returns and refunds in detailed ledgers that were found at Lambert’s residence. The fraudulent tax refunds were issued in the form of U.S. Treasury checks and debit cards in other individuals’ names. Lambert and her co-conspirators used the refunds to obtain cash and goods for their personal use. 

On January 21, 2014, co-conspirator Earl Rojelio Blanchett was sentenced to 10 years and four months in federal prison for his role in this tax fraud scheme. According to court documents, Blanchett sold seven Treasury checks, with a face value of more than $77,000, to undercover law enforcement agents.   

This case was investigated by the FBI, IRS – Criminal Investigation, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, and the Tampa Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelley Howard-Allen.

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces today that a federal jury found Joseph Witchard (55, Orlando) guilty of nine counts of mail fraud, six counts of filing false claims against the United States, six counts of theft of government property, and nine counts of aggravated identity theft. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on each mail fraud count, 5 years’ imprisonment on each false claims count, 10 years in prison on each of the theft of government property counts, and an additional 2 years’ imprisonment for the aggravated identity theft charges. A sentencing hearing is set for January 26, 2015.

According to evidence presented at trial, Witchard orchestrated two mail fraud schemes, one to steal retirement funds and life insurance proceeds, and another to file fraudulent tax returns. During both schemes, he used identities that had been stolen from a variety of sources. The personal identifying information of more than 60 victims was found during a search of Witchard’s residence in February 2010. Witchard, and others, negotiated the retirement, life insurance, and tax refund checks at local businesses, including car dealerships.

This case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service, IRS - Criminal Investigation, and the United States Secret Service.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney E. Jackson Boggs, Jr.

Fort Myers, Florida – United States District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell yesterday sentenced Alfred W. Lenz (68, Montague, Michigan) to four years and nine months in federal prison for wire fraud. He also was ordered to forfeit his interest in a house located in Montague, and the contents of a retirement account that were traceable to proceeds of the offense. In addition, the Court ordered Lenz to pay $2,380,465.11 in restitution to the victim and imposed a forfeiture money judgment in that amount. The government intends to seek permission to turn over any recovered funds to the Clerk of the Court for distribution to the victim. Lenz pleaded guilty on June 11, 2014.      

According to court documents, Lenz was the Controller for the Vineyards Development Corporation (VDC) in Naples, Florida from March 31, 2005, until April 27, 2012. Between January 11, 2007, and December 9, 2010, he embezzled a total of $2,380,465.11 from the VDC.  He then used the money to buy real estate and for other personal expenses.

This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and the Collier County Sheriff’s Office’s Economic Crimes Unit, with assistance from the Office of the State Attorney for the Twentieth Judicial Circuit. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David G. Lazarus.