Middle District of Florida

Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Jose Samir Renteria-Cuero, a/k/a Jose Morfi (51, Cali, Colombia, South America) today pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to distribute five (5) kilograms or more of cocaine, on board a vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United States.  Renteria-Cuero faces a mandatory minimum penalty of ten years in federal prison, up to a maximum term of life imprisonment.

According to the plea agreement, Renteria-Cuero was involved in maritime cocaine smuggling operations from the 1980s until at least 2009.  He started out as a mechanic, servicing go-fast vessels (GFVs) and participating in GFV smuggling operations. Eventually, he acquired GFVs and self-propelled semi-submersible (SPSS) vessels and recruited mariners to participate in maritime cocaine smuggling operations.  Renteria-Cuero worked with others to transport and store cocaine in Colombia, construct and repair GFVs and SPSS vessels, and dispatched those stateless vessels from Colombia.  Renteria-Cuero provided maritime cocaine transportation services aboard stateless vessels that were used to smuggle cocaine from Colombia to Mexico, via the Pacific Ocean, in international waters, knowing and intending that the cocaine would ultimately be imported unlawfully into the United States. Many of these ventures involved at least 1,000 kilograms of cocaine.

Renteria-Cuero was arrested in Cali, Colombia in March 2012, and subsequently extradited to the United States, first arriving at a place in the Middle District of Florida.

This case was investigated by the Panama Express South Strike Force, a standing Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation comprised of agents and analysts from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, 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. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher F. Murray.

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Walter Medlin (70, Kissimmee) pleaded guilty today to tax evasion. He faces a maximum penalty of 5 years in federal prison. His sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled.

Medlin was charged on November 10, 2013. 

According to court documents, Medlin received more than $7.5 million in income from the sale of an interest in a landfill. Rather than report that income on his tax return, he attempted to evade his taxes by using several limited partnerships to conduct transactions for his benefit. As the result of a prior United States Tax Court ruling, Medlin knew that he could not use nominees, such as the limited partnerships, to evade his taxes in this manner. To further conceal the offense, Medlin failed to file a tax return, but submitted requests for extensions in which he falsely represented that he did not owe any taxes. The total amount of the attempted tax evasion was over $1.1 million. As part of his plea agreement, Medlin has agreed to file his tax return and pay his taxes, including penalties, and interest.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service -- Criminal Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the arrest and return by a grand jury of a thirty-five-count indictment charging Thomas Bandzul with tax fraud.  Specifically, Bandzul is charged with nineteen counts of assisting in preparing a false tax return, thirteen counts of wire fraud, two counts of filing a false tax return and one count of aggravated identity theft. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 3 years in federal prison for each count of assisting in preparing a false tax return and each count of filing a false return.  On each wire fraud count he faces up to twenty years in federal prison.  He also faces two years in prison for the aggravated identity theft charge, to be served consecutive to the wire fraud sentence. The indictment also notifies Bandzul that the United States intends to forfeit any assets, which are alleged to be traceable proceeds of the offenses. Bandzul made his initial appearance before United States Magistrate Judge Joel B. Toomey this afternoon.  He was released on a $25,000 bond.

According to the indictment, between January 2008 and May 2011, Bandzul was a tax return preparer in Duval and St. Johns counties. As such, he allegedly knowingly and willfully made false claims for deductions and credits on behalf of his clients, which resulted in additional IRS tax refunds. The indictment alleges that, as part of a scheme, Bandzul would prepare and furnish one tax return to his taxpayer client, but then would make false and fraudulent claims on separate tax returns that he actually filed electronically with the IRS. By prearrangement, Bandzul was to be paid a specified fee by his clients out of the anticipated IRS refunds. Bandzul allegedly caused the additional higher tax refunds to be paid to him, through a bank clearinghouse, as additional tax preparation fees, without his clients’ knowledge or consent. In order to avoid detection by the IRS, Bandzul allegedly used various identities beside his own to electronically file tax returns. The tax loss from this scheme is alleged to be in excess of $100,000.  

Additionally, the indictment alleges that Bandzul committed tax fraud on his individual tax returns by claiming a total income of $14,945 on his amended 2008 tax return, when he was paid $208,967 in fees, and by claiming $9,536 in total income on his 2009 tax return when he was paid $335,452 in fees. Finally, according to the indictment, Bandzul committed aggravated identity theft by using a client’s name and Social Security Number to electronically file a fraudulent tax return as a tax return preparer and commit wire fraud.

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

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

Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard today sentenced Ray Charles Gasaway (48, Glen St. Mary) to 32 months in federal prison for failing to register as a sex offender in the state of Florida after relocating from the state of Tennessee. Gasaway was also ordered to serve a 10-year term of supervised release and to register as a sex offender.  Gasaway pleaded guilty on October 21, 2013, and has been in custody since his arrest on May 1, 2013, in Glen St. Mary.

According to court documents, on March 12, 1996, Gasaway was convicted of committing sexual battery and rape in Davidson County, Tennessee.  Subsequent to his conviction, between June 2012 and May 2013, he relocated from Tennessee and established a residence in Florida. On May 1, 2013, an officer with the Baker County Sheriff=s Office responded to a residence in Glen St. Mary, in response to an anonymous tip that an unregistered male sexual offender named “Ray” was living at that residence.  The officer made contact with Gasaway, who falsely identified himself as "Ray Galloway."  Gasaway subsequently admitted that his real name was Ray Charles Gasaway, and that he had moved to Baker County from Tennessee about a year ago, and had not registered as a sexual offender in Florida. Gasaway was arrested. Records checks confirmed that Gasaway had failed to register as a sex offender with Florida authorities.     

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 U.S. Marshals Service, to assist the states in locating and apprehending non-compliant sex offenders. This case was investigated by the Baker County Sheriff’s Office, the United States Marshals Service, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

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, 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 for more information about internet safety education.

Orlando, FL – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that U.S. District Judge John Antoon, II yesterday sentenced Luis Flores, Jr. (19, Lake Mary) to three and a half years in federal prison for credit card fraud and aggravated identity theft.  The court also ordered Flores to forfeit computers, electronic equipment, and cellular telephones, which were traceable to and facilitated the offenses of conviction.  As part of his sentence, the court also entered a money judgment in the amount of $16,082, the proceeds of the charged criminal conduct. Flores pleaded guilty on October 23, 2013. Flores’ mother, Kyah Green (41), was sentenced to three years of probation and ordered to make restitution in the amount of $16,082. Green lied to federal agents to cover up the fraud committed by Flores. She pleaded guilty on October 22, 2013.

According to court documents, in March 2013, Flores was terminated from his job at a call center for diverting a co-worker’s electronically deposited paycheck to a bank account controlled by Flores. Immediately after his termination, Flores began a scheme to take over the credit card accounts of celebrities. He was successful in obtaining $71,251.99 in fraudulent wire transfers from those accounts into a bank account controlled by him. From March 2013 through at least July 2013, these account takeovers by Flores resulted in numerous credit cards being delivered to Flores’ and Green’s house in the names of other persons.

In late March 2013, Flores was arrested on state charges for electronically diverting his co-worker’s paycheck. On May 19, 2013, Flores made bail on the state charge and immediately restarted his attempts to take over the credit card accounts of celebrities and, later, law enforcement officials.

  In June 2013, federal agents executed a search warrant at the home of Flores and Green. During the execution of the search warrant, Green lied to agents and denied any knowledge of Flores’ bank account, in which Flores received the $71,251.99 in fraudulent wire transfers. In fact, while Flores was still in jail on his state charges, Green had used that bank account to make purchases and ATM withdrawals totaling about $16,082, including thousands of dollars of electronic equipment, designer merchandise, and other consumer goods.

This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel C. Irick.

Fort Myers, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the filing of a criminal complaint charging Kevin Charles Kaszynski (48, Fort Myers) with possession of child pornography. If convicted, Kaszynski faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. 

According to the criminal complaint, from on or about April 2009 through June 2012, Kaszynski possessed child pornography. While going through boxes that had been stored in a leased storage unit, Kaszynski’s wife found a computer hard drive among other items belonging to her husband. On August 27, 2013, Kaszynski’s wife accessed the hard drive and opened a file which depicted a prepubescent girl in a sexual pose.  The hard drive was turned over to law enforcement for further investigation. On September 5, 2013, agents obtained a search warrant for the external hard drive. A forensic analysis of the external drive revealed more than 7,000 images and more than 400 videos depicting child pornography.

A criminal complaint is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of the federal criminal laws, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with assistance from the Fort Myers Police Department. It will be 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.

Fort Myers, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that North Fort Myers residents Alan Robert Johnson (35) and Jennifer A. Sparks (39) pleaded guilty earlier this week to production of child pornography. Johnson faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 25 years, up to a maximum penalty of 50 years in federal prison. Sparks faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years, up to a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.

According to the plea agreement, on or about May 12, 2012, in Lee County, Johnson and his girlfriend Jennifer Sparks knowingly used a 4 year-old girl to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing child pornography. On June 4, 2012, a private citizen turned the cellular telephone that Johnson and Sparks had used to produce the child pornography over law enforcement. The cell phone had been found in a shopping cart at a Lee County Wal-Mart, on or about June 2, 2012. 

Further investigation revealed that Johnson was a registered sex offender. A subsequent search warrant was obtained for his residence, and another cellular phone was located in the bedroom shared by Sparks and Johnson. That cellular phone also contained sexually explicit images of the minor.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Child Exploitation Task Force, which includes the Cape Coral Police Department and the Lee County Sheriff’s Office. 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.

Orlando, Florida – Senior U.S. District Judge Gregory A. Presnell sentenced Salvatore Ciccarello, Jr. (31, Apopka) to 7 years in federal prison for wire fraud. Ciccarello was also ordered to serve 3 years of supervised release and to pay more than $3 million in restitution to his victims. 

On October 10, 2013, Ciccarello was convicted by a federal jury of 15 counts of wire fraud. 

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Ciccarello’s companies (Workalition, Inc. and Workalition of America, LLC) entered into a “factoring” arrangement with AGR Advisors, Inc.  "Factoring" is a financial transaction by which a business sells its invoices to a third party (called a factor) at a discount. The factor provides financing to the seller of the invoice in the form of a cash advance, often 70% to 85% of the amount of the invoice. Once an invoice has been factored, the business will arrange to have the client pay the factor directly.

From May 2011 until December 2011, Ciccarello submitted a series of factoring invoices falsely representing that Ciccarello’s companies were owed millions of dollars for providing temporary and permanent staffing for several businesses. In fact, Ciccarello’s companies were not owed that money, and many of the employees identified on the invoices were fictitious. To deceive AGR into funding the invoices, Ciccarello forged documents and directed his employees to keep a second set of books, to forge documents, and to prepare invoices that included the fictitious employees. As a result of his scheme, Ciccarello defrauded AGR out of more than $3 million.

Further, in August 2012, Ciccarello signed an agreement with TS Staffing, by which that company agreed to fund four Workalition payrolls. After those payrolls were funded, Ciccarello was supposed to begin paying back some of what he owed. Instead, he sent emails whereby he represented that he had deposited checks into TS Staffing’s account. In response, TS Staffing released more money, only to learn later that Ciccarello had actually put a stop payment on the checks.  Ciccarello was able to defraud TS Staffing out of $106,000 through this scheme.

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

Tampa, Florida - U.S. District Judge Susan C. Bucklew today sentenced Jennifer Meier Hunt to 2 years and 6 months in federal prison for committing stolen identity refund fraud. As part of her sentence, the court also entered a forfeiture money judgment in the amount of $97,238.00, representing the proceeds of the tax fraud.

Hunt pleaded guilty to one count of theft of government property and one count of aggravated identity theft on June 25, 2013.

According to court documents, in April 2011, a confidential informant told agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) that certain employees of a Tampa based professional staffing company were filing fraudulent income tax returns using TurboTax.com. Three individuals involved in the conspiracy were then identified by agents, supervisors of the staffing company, and Turbo Tax. On May 19, 2011, federal search warrants were executed at the residences of these three individuals. The investigation subsequently revealed that between February 2, 2011, and May 2, 2011, Hunt used stolen identities to electronically file 75 fraudulent federal income tax returns in order to obtain refunds to which she was not entitled. The value of the refunds that would have resulted from the filed returns totaled approximately $187,687. Although some of the returns were rejected by the Internal Revenue Service, 47 of the fraudulent returns were accepted, resulting in the issuance of $97,238 in tax refunds to debit cards under the control of Hunt. None of the victims of the fraudulently-filed tax returns, which included a number of deceased individuals, had authorized Hunt to open or use a debit card in their name. Neither had anyone authorized the conspirators to file a tax return on his or her behalf.

This case was investigated by the FBI and the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney and Senior Litigation Counsel Donald L. Hansen.

Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge James D. Whittemore yesterday sentenced Ricky Muoio (45) to 20 years in federal prison for distribution of methamphetamine and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine.  Muoio was found guilty by a jury on November 6, 2013.

According to court documents, and testimony and evidence presented at trial, on April 11, 2013, a confidential source (CS) working with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) purchased two ounces of methamphetamine for $3,000 from Muoio, at his residence in Lakeland. On April 24, 2013, DEA agents executed a federal search warrant at the residence. In one of the bedrooms, they found and seized a total of approximately 1.5 ounces of methamphetamine, $3,500 in cash and a digital scale.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kathy J.M. Peluso.

Ocala, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that a federal jury yesterday found Lucien Frank Sobolewski (44, Eustis) guilty of possession of a firearm and ammunition by an unlawful user of a controlled substance (marijuana).  Sobolewski faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. His sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled. Sobolewski was indicted on March 20, 2013.

According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, U.S. Forestry officers stopped Sobolewski in the Ocala National Forest on February 6, 2013, for failure to wear a seatbelt. Sobolewski admitted to the officers that he had a .50 caliber handgun and marijuana inside of his truck. Even though Sobolewski was not a law enforcement officer, a search revealed a replica Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) badge mounted inside his wallet. Further investigation revealed that Sobolewski had engaged in a pattern of marijuana use since he was 19 years old. Though Sobolewski had a Florida concealed weapons permit for the firearm, his pattern of marijuana use prohibited him from possessing either firearms or ammunition under federal law. 

This case was investigated by the U.S. Forestry Service and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Robert E. Bodnar, Jr.

This case is involves ATF’s Frontline model - a three-pronged approach to violent crime reduction through community involvement, criminal enforcement, and sustainable prevention.

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that a federal jury yesterday found Jason Lydell Orr (35, Merritt Island) guilty of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.  Based on his prior felony convictions, Orr faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years, up to life in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 14, 2014, before Senior U.S. District Judge Gregory A. Presnell.  Orr was indicted on September 25, 2013.

According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, on April 21, 2013, deputies from the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office responded to a neighborhood in Merritt Island after residents reported hearing multiple gun shots. After canvassing the neighborhood and speaking to a 911 caller, deputies observed spent shell casings in the bed of a pickup truck parked in front of Orr’s residence. Deputies knocked on Orr’s front door and Orr eventually came to the door. Further investigation revealed that Orr possessed a loaded Israeli Weapon Industries, model Desert Eagle, .40 caliber pistol inside a Chevy Caprice Classic parked in front of his home. A crime scene technician collected DNA evidence from the firearm.  Laboratory analysis confirmed that Orr’s DNA was present on the firearm.

At the time, Orr had at least three prior felony convictions for serious drug offenses and violent felonies. As such, he was not permitted to possess a firearm or ammunition under federal law.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) and the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Andrew C. Searle.

It 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 Julie Leon, Special Agent in Charge, ATF, is coordinating the Project Safe Neighborhoods effort here in the Middle District of Florida in cooperation with federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.

This case is also a part of ATF’s Frontline strategy to reduce violent crime and improve the quality of life in communities, where law enforcement efforts are focused.

Orlando, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that a federal jury today found Fane Dacosta (40, Daytona Beach) guilty of twenty-five counts of aiding in the preparation of false tax returns, and three counts of failure to file his personal tax returns.  Dacosta faces a maximum penalty of three years’ imprisonment for each count of aiding in the preparation of false tax returns, and one year in federal prison for each count of failing to file a personal tax return. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 24, 2014.

Dacosta was indicted on April 11, 2013. 

According to evidence presented at trial, Dacosta was the owner of a tax return business (More Than Enaf Refund & Affordable Tax Services) in Holly Hill. For the tax years of 2006 through 2009, Dacosta prepared returns for individuals in which he falsified the amounts of deductions and tax credits owed to taxpayers, resulting in those taxpayers receiving undeserved tax refunds.  In particular, Dacosta fraudulently claimed education credits for clients who never attended college, and he inflated itemized deductions. In response to the false returns that Dacosta prepared, the Internal Revenue Service issued over $500,000 in undeserved refunds.  In addition, Dacosta failed to file his personal tax returns in 2007, 2008, and 2009, despite earning over $100,000, $200,000, and $300,000 in each of those years, respectively.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service -- Criminal Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg.

Orlando, FL – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Carlos M. Rodriguez (25, Apopka) yesterday pleaded guilty to theft of the United States mail.  Rodriguez faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to court documents, beginning in October 2013, and continuing until his arrest on November 20, 2013, Rodriguez, who was employed as a contract highway route driver in Central Florida, opened letters and packages entrusted to him for delivery, and often stole or discarded the contents of that mail. During an undercover operation investigating his thefts, Rodriguez failed to properly deliver a parcel placed in the mail, and was approached by agents. During an interview with agents, Rodriguez admitted that he stole mail while driving his route. He further admitted to stealing numerous items and throwing away items that he did not want, after opening the parcels. The items kept by Rodriguez included a laptop computer, a tablet, sunglasses, clothing, food, and alcohol.  He also admitted to stealing gift cards, some of which he had on his person at the time. In a written statement, Rodriguez voluntarily said, in part, “The reason I did what I did was to make some extra money and see if I can get some good stuff.” 

This case was investigated by the United States Postal Service, Office of Inspector General. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel C. Irick.

Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. Magistrate Judge Joel B. Toomey today sentenced Juan Carlos Angel (35) to pay a $10,000 fine for engaging in a pattern of hiring illegal aliens. Angel is the owner of Peppers 5 Mexican Restaurant, on Atlantic Boulevard and other locations, in Jacksonville.

Angel pleaded guilty to the offenses on October 30, 2013.

According to court documents, in June 2013, four employees of the Jacksonville restaurant had been arrested for document fraud following a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) audit of the restaurant’s Form I-9s, or employment eligibility verification forms. After records checks were completed, it was determined that between in or around March 2011 through in and around March 2012, Angel hired employees that were citizens of other countries and were in the United States illegally. Thereafter, Angel was interviewed and admitted to knowingly hiring five illegal aliens not authorized to work in the United States, during those periods.  

This case was investigated by the Jacksonville Office of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dale Campion.

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Tampa, Florida - U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announced today that a federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Linberto Gallardo-Gonzalez (42); Uriel Julio Tapia (35); Miguel Vasquez-Barrios (37), all of Colombia, South America; and Miguel Angel Sori-Ortiz (41, Dominican Republic), with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, while on board a vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United States; and aiding and abetting each other and other persons to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of cocaine, while on board a vessel subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. Each faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years, up to a maximum penalty of life in federal prison for each count.     

On January 22, 2014, Gallardo-Gonzalez, Tapia, Vasquez-Barrios, and  Sori-Ortiz were detained during the interdiction of a go-fast boat traveling at a high rate of speed and carrying 2,500 pounds of cocaine, worth an estimated $37 million wholesale value.  The cocaine was seized in a historic multi-national counterdrug operation south of the Dominican Republic. This interdiction marks the first time a U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Law Enforcement Detachment Team (LEDET) and helicopter embarked on board a foreign flagged military vessel in support of counterdrug operations.  The USCG LEDET team and helicopter were operating aboard the British Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) Wave Knight.  The Coast Guard helicopter launched from the RFA Wave Knight when the 25-foot go-fast boat was detected with four individuals and suspicious packages on board, traveling at a high rate of speed.  The helicopter crew arrived on scene and attempted to signal the go-fast boat in an effort to stop it.  Ultimately, the crew resorted to firing disabling shots to stop the vessel’s engine. During the pursuit, the four individuals on board were observed jettisoning multiple packages overboard.  After the vessel was stopped, a USCG LEDET team arrived at the scene and detained the four individuals aboard the boat and retrieved 45 bales of cocaine from the debris field, where the packages had been thrown overboard.

The four crewman detained on the go-fast vessel were brought to Middle District of Florida, Tampa Division for prosecution.  They appeared before a United States Magistrate Judge to be advised of the charges against them and for a bond hearing.  They were detained pending the resolution of the case.        
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of the federal criminal laws, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty. 

This case was investigated by OCDETF's Panama Express Strike Force, comprised of agents and analysts from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, United States Coast Guard Investigative Service, and Joint Interagency Task Force South.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez.

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.

Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Raul Eraso-Mejia (54, Cali, Colombia, South America) today pleaded guilty to an Information charging him with conspiring with others to distribute 5 kilograms or more of cocaine, knowing and intending that such substance would be unlawfully imported into the United States. Eraso-Mejia faces a minimum mandatory penalty of 10 years, up to life in federal prison.

According to the plea agreement, from at least 2005 through the end of 2009, Eraso-Mejia conspired with others to smuggle cocaine out of Colombia, by sea, knowing and intending that the cocaine would be ultimately imported into and distributed in the United States. Eraso-Mejia and others invested in cocaine smuggling operations and were part-owners of the cocaine.         

For example, in July 2009, Eraso-Mejia was a partial owner of cocaine being smuggled from Colombia's Pacific coast, onboard a stateless self-propelled semi-submersible ("SPSS") vessel. All of the cocaine was intended for importation, by way of Mexico, for subsequent distribution in the United States. After traveling on the high seas and in international waters, co-conspirators onboard the SPSS vessel successfully off loaded the cocaine to co-conspirators embarked in go-fast vessels (GFVs) off the coast of Mexico. Thereafter, the Mexican Navy interdicted the GFVs, and seized 7,507 kilograms of cocaine.

This case was investigated by the Panama Express South Strike Force, a standing Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation, comprised of agents and analysts from the Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, 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.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher F. Murray.

Orlando, Florida –Chief U.S. District Judge Anne C. Conway today sentenced Warren Scott Kennell (45) to 58 years in federal prison for producing child pornography. Kennell previously pleaded guilty to two counts of production of child pornography. During today’s sentencing hearing, Judge Conway said that Kennell had abused his position of trust as a missionary. 

According to court documents, on May 31, 2013, Kennell arrived at Orlando International Airport on inbound Copa Airlines Flight #446, from Panama City, Panama. After retrieving his luggage, he was escorted to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) secondary inspection area.

After Kennell was seated, a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agent searched Kennell's belongings and found three thumb drives and one external hard drive. These items were given to computer forensic agents from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) who were present to help with the search. The FDLE agents conducted a forensic preview of the thumb drives and the external hard drive. During an interview with law enforcement officials, Kennell said that he had worked as a missionary in Brazil for the New Tribes Mission, in Sanford, Florida. He also stated that he had been doing missionary work for several years. Kennell told the agents that he had never touched a child in a sexual and/or inappropriate manner, that he had never taken pornographic images of a child, and that there would be no child pornography found on any of the items in his luggage. After Kennell made these statements, FDLE computer forensic agents advised HSI agents that two images of child pornography had been found on Kennell's external hard drive.

When shown the first image, Kennell acknowledged that he was the man in the picture performing a sex act on the prepubescent female. He stated that he believed the girl was about 12 years old at the time the picture was taken. When shown a second image, Kennell admitted that he had taken that picture and that the girl in that image had also been about 12 years of age, at the time. Kennell further admitted that both images had been taken in Brazil while he was on the missionary assignment.

Kennell admitted that he had sexually abused children while in Brazil. He stated that he had taken pornographic pictures of the children, and that the pictures would be found on the external hard drive. The forensic examination of the external hard drive showed more than 940 images of child pornography. The child victims are members of an indigenous tribe in the Amazon, where Kennell was setting up a church. While setting up the church, Kennell befriended these victims and sexually abused them. 

“Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s Cyber/High-Tech Computer Crime Squads work aggressively to take these dangerous perpetrators off our streets,” said FDLE Orlando Regional Operations Center Special Agent in Charge Danny Banks.  “Working together with our federal and local law enforcement partners, we will do everything we can to protect the children victimized by child pornography and other crimes.”

“Kennell represents the worst kind of criminal – one that preys on innocent children,” said Shane Folden, deputy special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations Tampa, which oversees the agency’s Orlando office that investigated this case. “We cannot take back the abuse that these children endured, but this sentence ensures Kennell won’t have the opportunity to abuse another child.”

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.  It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tanya Davis Wilson.

It is another 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.

Orlando, Florida - Senior U.S. District Judge Gregory A. Presnell yesterday sentenced Werawat Isaraphanich (38, Bronx, New York) to 5 years in federal prison for access device fraud. Isaraphanich was also ordered to serve a 3-year term of supervised release following his incarceration, and to pay more than $323,000 to the victims of his crime. Isaraphanich also agreed to forfeit over $176,000, currently being held in two accounts, which will be returned to the victims as partial payment towards restitution. 

Isaraphanich pleaded guilty on September 18, 2013. 

According to court documents, Isaraphanich used stolen credit card numbers to purchase tickets from Walt Disney World, Universal Studios, StubHub, and Ticket Master, which he then sold at a discount. To purchase the tickets and other items, Isaraphanich used software that generated a fictitious caller ID, which allowed him to mask the telephone number that he was using when he called to make the purchases. Between April 2010 and June 2013, Isaraphanich made approximately 1,800 calls using fictitious caller IDs, and used more than 100 stolen credit card numbers to make fraudulent purchases of theme park tickets, concert tickets, sporting event tickets, airline tickets, and products from Apple and Macy’s. As part of his scheme, Isaraphanich attempted over $1.1 million in fraudulent credit card transactions, with victims suffering more than $323,000 in actual losses. 

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

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Susan C. Bucklew today sentenced John C. Gaglione, Jr. (49, Lakeland) to 33 months in federal prison for trafficking in counterfeit labels. As part of his sentence, the court entered a money judgment in the amount of $365,000, the proceeds of the charged criminal conduct.  Gaglione was also ordered to pay $180,000 in restitution. He pleaded guilty on October 24, 2013.

Gaglione is the last of eight individuals sentenced for his involvement in a global counterfeit motion picture DVD investigation that began in Lakeland, and extended to the People's Republic of China.

According to court documents, in late 2010, Gaglione and co-conspirators began making bulk purchases of counterfeit motion picture DVDs.  They purchased the counterfeit DVDs from Jian Huang a/k/a "China Glen," a supplier based in the People’s Republic of China, and his company called "TM Wholesale."  Huang was apprehended in April 2012.

After Huang’s apprehension, Gaglione developed and acquired counterfeit DVDs from other sources of supply.  After acquiring the counterfeit DVDs, Gaglione sold them to customers in the United States.  He sold them online via Ebay, at a family run sports card store called Lakeland Sports and Collectibles, and from a flea market booth in Auburndale.

On August 10, 2012, Jian Huang pleaded guilty to conspiracy and trafficking in counterfeit goods. He was sentenced to 51 months in federal prison on November 2, 2012.  The court also ordered Huang to pay restitution to the Motion Picture Association of America (AMPAA@) in the amount of $1,214,333.12.  The MPAA is a trade association that represents certain motion picture, home video and television industry companies, including Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc.; Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.; Paramount Pictures Corp.; Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp.; Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures; and Universal Studios.

Co-conspirators Alex Lee Lim, Robert Edmond Mattie, James William Ray, Donald Kenneth Brown, Jr., Martin William Grenfell, and Christopher Alexander T. Clark each pleaded guilty to trafficking in counterfeit labels.  On November 15, 2012, Lim was sentenced to 51 months in federal prison, and was ordered to pay restitution to the MPAA in the amount of $280,752.67.  On November 30, 2012, Ray was sentenced to 46 months in federal prison, and was ordered to pay $261,541.28 in restitution to the MPAA.  Ray was also ordered to forfeit $100,005 in cash seized at the time of his arrest.  On December 6, 2012, Mattie was sentenced to probation for a term of 5 years, with the first 12 months to be served on home detention.  On February 22, 2013, Grenfell was sentenced to 3 years' probation and Brown was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison and was ordered to pay $3,000 in restitution to the MPAA.  Clark was sentenced on May 16, 2013, to 36 months’ probation and ordered to pay $6,000 in restitution to the MPAA.

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Lakeland Police Department.  It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark E. Bini.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States District Judge Timothy J. Corrigan sentenced James Daniel Kasper (29, Jacksonville) to 20 years in federal prison for using a child to produce child pornography. Kasper was also ordered to serve a 20-year term of supervised release, following his incarceration, and to register as a sex offender. Kasper has been held in the custody of the United States Marshals Service since his arrest on March 20, 2013, in Jacksonville.

According to court documents, in February 2013, law enforcement officers in Tennessee arrested a registered sex offender on child pornography charges. Further investigation revealed that several hundred emails had been exchanged between this individual and others, many of which contained attached images and videos depicting child pornography.  Investigators determined that one of the email accounts belonged to James Daniel Kasper and that Kasper had uploaded images of child pornography over the Internet and sent them to others by email, via a website whose server is outside of the United States.

On March 20, 2013, FBI agents and other law enforcement officers executed a federal search warrant at Kasper's apartment located on Sunbeam Road, in Jacksonville.  During this search, agents seized a laptop computer and a thumb drive. Meanwhile, two agents contacted Kasper at his place of employment in Jacksonville.  When interviewed, Kasper stated, among things, that while babysitting a 9 year-old child, he used his smart phone to produce sexually explicit photos of the minor child.  After taking the photos of the child, Kasper uploaded the images over the Internet, onto a particular website and sent them to others via email.  Kasper also stated that he used a peer-to-peer file sharing program to search for child pornography on the Internet.

The thumb drive seized at Kasper’s residence contained at least 49 images of child pornography that were produced by him. Evidence from Kasper’s email accounts were introduced during the sentencing hearing. The evidence showed that Kasper had traded images of child pornography, which he produced, over the Internet.  In one particular email, Kasper stated that two of the pornographic images that he produced of the victim child were “just a sample of my own work.”

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.  It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

It is another 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, 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. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announced today that Jimmy Laverne Holmes (57, Fleming Island) has pleaded guilty in United States District Court, in Jacksonville, to receiving child pornography over the Internet. He faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 5 years, up to 20 years in federal prison, and a potential life term of supervised release. Holmes has been in custody since his arrest on September 24, 2013.  At the time of his arrest, Holmes stated that he worked at the Barco-Newton YMCA in Fleming Island, where he taught sports to children. A sentencing hearing has not yet been set.

According to court documents, an agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, in Jacksonville, began an investigation to identify individuals in that area that had access to and/or were trading images and videos of child pornography over the Internet.  Through his investigation, the agent determined that a host computer in the Jacksonville area, using a particular Internet Protocol (IP) address, was hosting images of child pornography via a particular peer-to-peer file sharing program. The agent made successful connections to the host computer and successfully downloaded several video files directly. The downloaded files contained depictions of child pornography. Further investigation revealed that the subscriber information to the IP address resolved to a particular residence located in Fleming Island, Florida, where Holmes resided.  

On September 24, 2013, FBI agents and other law enforcement officers executed the search warrant at Holmes= residence and seized several computers and other items of electronic media. At the residence, Holmes told the agents that he knew child pornography to be both illegal and morally unjustifiable, and was recently downloading and watching child pornography two or three times per week. Holmes further stated that he has tried to cease such activities repeatedly, but has not been able to abstain indefinitely.  According to Holmes, he uses child pornography for “personal use” and further noted, “I like to watch it.” Subsequent analysis of Holmes' computer media revealed that it contained a total of 174 videos and 247 images depicting child pornography.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the Clay County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

It is another 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, 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. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."

Tampa, FL –United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Naba Raheem Lewis (34, Tampa) pleaded guilty, last Friday, to coercion and enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity. Lewis faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

Lewis was charged in an Information on December 13, 2013.

According to the plea agreement, on June 12, 2013, the Tampa Police Department received a 911 call in reference to a room located at the Americas Best Value Inn & Suites. While conducting this investigation, officers made contact with two sixteen year-old minors and a baby. Further investigation determined that Lewis had met one of the minors on an Internet website, in June 2013.  Lewis had browsed the website and found the minor’s Internet profile, then utilized the information to send her a private message. Lewis informed the minor that he was reviewing her photographs online and noticed that she had a child.  He told her that he knew how she could make money to help care for her child.

Lewis subsequently obtained sexually explicit photos of the minor victim and her friend.  Lewis then posted an Internet advertisement listing his telephone number so that he could schedule dates for the minor victims to meet men and have sex with them in exchange for money. To facilitate the crimes, Lewis rented two hotel rooms at the Americas Best Value Inn & Suites. One room was used for Lewis and the minors to sleep, while the other room was designated for prostitution. Lewis took all of the money that the minors earned from prostitution and stashed it in one of the hotel rooms.

This case was investigated by the Tampa Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Stacie B. Harris.

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.

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Richard A. Lazzara today sentenced John Andrew Welden (29) to 13 years and 8 months in federal prison for tampering with a consumer product resulting in bodily injury to the victim (Remee Lee), and for conspiracy to commit mail fraud. Specifically, Judge Lazzara sentenced Welden to 10 years’ imprisonment on the consumer product offense and 44 months in prison on the mail fraud charge, to be served consecutively. The court also ordered Welden to pay restitution in the amount of $28,541, with respect to the injuries suffered by the victim, and to serve a 3-year term of supervised release, following his incarceration.

Welden pleaded guilty on September 9, 2013.

According to court documents, Welden obtained and then tampered with Cytotec pills by removing the identifying information from the pills. On March 29, 2013, Welden gave the pills to Lee, in a pill bottle, with a label falsely describing the pills as Amoxicillin. Subsequently, Welden admitted to law enforcement that he gave the pills to the victim, with the intention of killing her unborn child. Shortly after taking one of the Cytotec pills, on the same date, Lee began experiencing severe cramping and bleeding. Thereafter, her baby died.

Following two days of expert witness testimony on January 8th and 9th, 2014, Judge Lazzara found in favor of the United States and determined that the Cytotec pill taken by Lee, at the direction of Welden, caused her to suffer serious bodily injury and also resulted in the death of her unborn child.

This case was investigated by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys W. Stephen Muldrow and Josephine W. Thomas.

Tampa, FL – United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Ashley C. Guy (30, Riverview) today pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft charges. She faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison on the wire fraud charge and a 2 year consecutive sentence on the aggravated identity theft charge. In her plea agreement, Guy agreed to make full restitution to the Internal Revenue Service and to forfeit $309,895 to the United States, representing the amount of the proceeds obtained as a result of the wire fraud scheme. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

Guy was indicted on October 3, 2013.

According to the plea agreement, Ashley C. Guy a/k/a “Ashley C. Gay” devised and participated in a scheme to defraud the United States out of tax refunds by using stolen identities to electronically file false federal income tax returns. During a search warrant executed at Guy’s residence, federal agents uncovered lists containing more than 200 names, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers, as well as at least 15 prepaid debit cards in the names of others. The search also uncovered documents containing information on the filing of false tax returns, $1,500 in U.S. currency from a small safe in Guy’s living room, and $642 in cash from a purse in her master bedroom. In addition, agents found a trash can on the back porch that had been used for burning documents related to the fraud. The agents were able to recover a list of personal identifying information that had not been completely burned.

Between January 2012 and April 2013, approximately 100 false federal income tax returns were filed from Guy’s house, claiming $560,713 in refunds. Additionally, another 112 false returns, claiming $801,011 in refunds, were filed from different locations, but were linked to Guy. The IRS was able to stop many of these fraudulent refund claims.  Out of the 212 total returns claiming roughly $1,361,724 in refunds, the IRS was ultimately defrauded into paying $309,895.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation and the Tampa Police Department, with assistance from the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Matthew J. Mueller and Trial Attorney Jason H. Poole of the Department of Justice, Tax Division.

TAMPA, Fla. – The Missal of Ludovico da Romagnano, a 15th century manuscript known as the San Lorenzo, was repatriated to the Italian government Monday by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). It was stolen nearly 25 years ago from the Capitular Archive of the Archdiocese in Turin, Italy.

A. Lee Bentley III, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida, Susan McCormick, special agent in charge of HSI Tampa, , and Adolfo Barattolo, the consul general for the Italian Consulate in Miami, participated in the repatriation ceremony.

In 1990, the Archdiocese in Turin hired a team of professors to inventory the church’s ancient archives in preparation for an upcoming exhibit. After that inventory concluded, the Archdiocese determined 263 parchment pages had been cut from a missal, a breviary and an antiphonary. They were all from the same collection. Additionally, a number of rare books were missing from the archives.

Italian authorities conducted an investigation that resulted in the arrest of two individuals – Pier Luigi Cimma and Franca Gatto. These individuals, husband and wife, were two of the professors who participated in the 1990 inventory, which provided them access to the church’s ancient archives.  Cimma and Gatto confessed to the authorities that they had stolen several items, most of which they sold to a bookseller in Turin, Italy. The Monza Nucleo dei Carabinieri Tutela Patrimonio Culturale in Italy, a specialized police unit for cultural property, recovered some of the stolen items from Sotheby’s in London. 

In April 2011, an officer from the Carabinieri unit discovered a newspaper article from January 2006 online. That article detailed information on an upcoming exhibition at the Florida International Museum called “Ink and Blood.” The exhibit detailed the development of the Bible. The article touched on an illuminated manuscript promised to the Special Collections Department at the University of South Florida Library. The manuscript was from a 15th century Italian missal, which was not only a religious document, but also a common form of art in the Middle Ages.

The Carabinieri called Professor Constanza Montel Segre as an expert witness in June 2011 to confirm the manuscript featured in this newspaper article was the one stolen from the archives. She confirmed with certainty that the 15th century manuscript was the San Lorenzo, page 212 from the Missal of Ludovico da Romagnano.

In March 2012, HSI Tampa received a mutual legal assistance treaty request from the Italian government for assistance in, among other things, recovering the manuscript. With assistance of the University of South Florida, HSI special agents located the manuscript at a residence in St. Petersburg. The individuals in possession of the manuscript were unaware it had been stolen and exported from Italy in violation of Italian law. They had purchased the manuscript in 1997 from an art dealer in Islamorada, and they provided a receipt for the purchase.

With information taken from the sale receipt, HSI special agents located and interviewed the owners of the Islamorada antique book and map store where the St. Petersburg couple purchased the manuscript. The store owners often traveled to England to attend book auctions and other similar events to obtain items for their store. The item was likely purchased in England – where the Italian government had previously located several other stolen Italian artifacts – and transported back to the United States. The store owners did not know the manuscript was stolen.

Through his attorney, the individual in possession of the manuscript voluntarily surrendered the stolen manuscript to the U.S. government in June 2012.

“International cooperation with our law enforcement partners was essential to the success of our investigation,” said Susan McCormick, special agent in charge of HSI Tampa. “Through our partnership with Italian authorities, we were able to track down and authenticate that the manuscript we located in St. Petersburg was indeed the 15th century San Lorenzo, an important piece of Italy’s cultural heritage.”

“The Washington Office of Homeland Security Investigations informed me that a manuscript stolen from the ancient curial archives in Turin, Italy, was recovered through the University of South Florida, who posted its photo on their website, ultimately leading the Homeland Security investigators to its recovery,” said Adolfo Barattolo, consul general for the Italian Consulate in Miami. “The significance of criminal theft of national treasures goes well beyond its monetary and artistic values, as it is a crime against culture itself, which is of great importance to Italy.  Italy has more items on the Unesco World Heritage List than any other country, including historic cities, monuments, works of art, sculptures and landscapes. In this context, I am grateful to Tampa Homeland Security Investigations for recovering the artifact and for their prompt and constant contact and courtesy provided to this consulate general in Miami.”

“Today, the United States returns to Italy a stolen manuscript that, 700 years ago, was beautifully hand painted by an unknown Lombardian monk,” said A. Lee Bentley III, acting U.S. attorney. “In doing so, we have faithfully discharged our duties under our Treaty with the Republic of Italy, knowing that we have protected the interests of our friend and ally and protected a small piece of a historical legacy that belongs to all of us.”

HSI plays a leading role in criminal investigations that involve the illegal importation and distribution of cultural property, including the illicit trafficking of cultural property, especially objects that have been reported lost or stolen. The HSI Office of International Affairs, through its 67 attaché offices in 48 countries, works closely with foreign governments to conduct joint investigations, when possible.

HSI specially trained investigators, assigned to both domestic and international offices, partner with governments, agencies and experts to protect cultural antiquities. They also provide cultural property investigative training to law enforcement partners for crimes involving stolen property and art, and how to best enforce the law to recover these items when they emerge in the marketplace.

Since 2007, more than 7,150 artifacts have been returned to 26 countries, including paintings from France, Germany, Poland and Austria, 15th to 18th century manuscripts from Italy and Peru, as well as cultural artifacts from China, Cambodia and Iraq.

Members of the public who have information about suspected stolen cultural property are urged to call the toll-free HSI tip line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or complete its online tip form.

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Tampa, FL – Acting United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Samih Abdel Rahman (51, Tampa) today pleaded guilty for his involvement in a money laundering conspiracy. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

Rahman was charged in a superseding indictment on March 14, 2013.

According to the plea agreement, Rahman is the owner/operator of Sam & Sons Auto Sales, Inc. (“Sam & Sons”), a used car dealership, located in Tampa. For a period of years, until about March 2013, Rahman, assisted by others, sold vehicles to customers who paid with cash from narcotics trafficking and/or fraudulently-obtained income tax refund fraud (“SIRF”) checks. Knowing that those payments were the results of illegal activity, Rahman laundered the money by conducting the car sales in a manner that concealed the illicit sources of the money. For instance, he titled the sold vehicles in the names of "straw purchasers" – persons other than the actual buyers and intended users of the vehicles. Rahman also disguised the identities of the true buyers by creating and processing false paperwork for the car sales, including fake Bills of Sale and payment receipts. Upon receiving cash payments of more than $10,000, Rahman further laundered the money by structuring the bank deposits in a way that avoided triggering bank reporting requirements. He also failed to report those transactions, as required under federal law, by a car dealership receiving specific amounts of cash during the sales of vehicles. 

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Jackson.

Orlando, Florida – Chief U.S. District Judge Anne C. Conway today sentenced Don Osborne (42, Volusia County) to 27 years in federal prison for receipt and possession of child pornography. As part of his sentence, he was also ordered to serve a life term of supervision, following his incarceration. 

Osborne pleaded guilty on August 20, 3013.

According to court documents, U.S. Immigration and Custom’s Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) began investigating an Internet Protocol (IP) address that was located at a coffee shop, where images of child pornography were available for download via a peer‑to‑peer file sharing program. HSI special agents were able to download some of these child pornography images directly from Osborne. Further investigation revealed that Osborne often frequented the coffee shop and utilized their wireless Internet. On November 8, 2012, agents personally observed Osborne at the coffee shop, using a computer and a peer‑to‑peer file sharing program. The agents approached Osborne and interviewed him in the coffee shop. Osborne admitted to downloading child pornography, while using the Internet connection at that location. A forensic analysis of Osborne’s computer revealed that it contained over 1,000 images of child pornography. 

At the time of this offense, Osborne was a registered sex offender for previous sex offenses in West Virginia and Florida, and was on probation for a previous sex offense in Florida. 

“Child predators go to great lengths to view and trade child pornography online, including logging on to any unsecured wireless connection,” said Shane Folden, deputy special agent in charge of HSI Tampa, which oversees the agency’s Cocoa Beach office that conducted this investigation. “Our investigative techniques enabled us to identify this individual, even though he tried to use a public Wi-Fi connection to conceal his identity. I urge other child predators to take note – you cannot hide behind a public IP address.”

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 Shawn P. Napier.

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 – Chief U.S. District Judge Anne C. Conway today sentenced Philip Leon (68, Altamonte Springs) and John G. Wilkins (54, Chuluota) to 9 years in federal prison, respectively. The sentences were handed down in connection with their roles in a conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud. In addition, Leon and Wilkins were ordered to pay over $17 million in restitution to more than 200 victims, and to forfeit over $4 million in artwork and monies that are being held in various banks and trading accounts, which will be returned as partial payment to victims. 

Leon pleaded guilty on November 6, 2013. Wilkins pleaded guilty to the charges against him on August 22, 2013. 

According to court documents, Altamont Global Partners, LLC owned or managed a series of investment funds. Leon registered Altamont Global with the Florida Secretary of State in March 2009 and was a managing member of the company. Wilkins joined Altamont Global in 2009, later becoming one of its managing members.

The Matterhorn Fund, LLC was the first fund for which investors were solicited by Altamont Global, with Leon serving as the fund’s manager. To induce individuals to invest, Leon, Wilkins, and others falsely represented that the Matterhorn Fund had a long history of making profits, that Leon was a graduate of Stanford University, that he worked for Salomon Brothers as an institutional investment advisor, and that he had successfully traded worldwide investment vehicles for over three decades. None of those representations were true.

In the first quarter of 2010, the Matterhorn Fund experienced significant trading losses. Rather than accurately reflect those losses on the quarterly statements, Leon and Wilkins decided to falsify the quarterly statements and to falsely claim that the Matterhorn Fund was earning an above-market rate of return. The false rates of returns that were claimed for the Matterhorn Fund were then used to induce individuals to invest in the McKinley Fund. The McKinley Fund also lost money, and Leon and Wilkins decided to falsify the quarterly statements for that fund. The conspirators then used their alleged performance with the Matterhorn and McKinley Funds to solicit investments in two other funds: Midas Management Partners, LLC and Binary Strategy One Fund, LLC. In total, over 200 individuals invested more than $17 million in the four funds owned or managed by Altamont Global.

In June 2012, the National Futures Association (NFA) conducted a surprise examination of Altamont Global. During that examination, the NFA discovered that the quarterly statements were being falsified to hide losses and that the net asset values of the Matterhorn Fund and the McKinley Fund were being inflated to make it appear that trading had been successful.

On July 16, 2012, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission filed a complaint against Leon, Wilkins, and others. The District Court entered an emergency order that same day, freezing the assets of the defendants in that civil case.

These cases were investigated by the United States Secret Service and the State of Florida, Office of Financial Regulation. They were prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg.

Jacksonville, FL – U.S. District Judge Timothy Corrigan yesterday sentenced Randy Michael Jackson (40, Orange Park) to seven years in federal prison for receipt of child pornography. Jackson was indicted on February 20, 2013. He pleaded guilty to the offense on July 15, 013.

According to court documents, in February 2013, special agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) executed a search warrant at Jackson’s home, in Orange Park, and seized his computer. A forensic review of Jackson’s computer revealed that he had downloaded approximately 25,000 images and 500 hundred videos of children, as young as toddlers, engaged in sexually explicit conduct with adults. 

This case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Malisa Chokshi.

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. For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.usdoj.gov/psc and click on the tab "resources."

Fort Myers, Florida, – U.S. District Judge John E. Steele last week forfeited $304,050.00 in United States Currency and a G-35 Infiniti to the United States, as traceable proceeds of illegal drug activity. 

According to court documents, the $304,050 was found hidden within the tires of a salvaged G-35 Infiniti that was being transported on Interstate 75. The currency, mostly $20 bills, was bundled inside the tires, in heat-sealed packaging. The Infiniti, which was also equipped with a hidden after-market GPS transponder, allowing it to be remotely monitored, had been loaded onto a car-hauler in New Jersey. The car was scheduled to be delivered to an address in Miami, which Homeland Security Investigations special agents later determined to be non-existent.          

The United States commenced a civil forfeiture action against the property, alleging that it was the proceeds of drug trafficking. An individual (Johnny A. Melo) came forward to contest the forfeiture, asserting that the seized money was the proceeds of his Miami-based business, “Images Windows and Doors,” not drug proceeds. Following his conviction in the Southern District of Florida for a federal narcotics offense, aggravated identity theft and related criminal offenses, he abruptly abandoned his claim.

In the Middle District of Florida, enforcement of asset forfeiture laws is an integral part of our law enforcement mission. Taking the profit out of crime is important in disrupting and dismantling illegal enterprises, deterring crime, funding law enforcement efforts, and restoring property to victims. In fiscal year 2013, more than $46.2 million in criminal and civil forfeitures was deposited into the Department of Justice and Department of Treasury Assets Forfeiture Funds as a result of forfeitures completed in the Middle District of Florida. 

“This case is yet another example of the outstanding work done by both our law enforcement partners and the attorneys in our Asset Recovery and Victims Rights Division,” said Acting U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III.          

This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with support from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of General Counsel, and the Florida Department of Transportation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys David G. Lazarus and Bonnie Glober.

TAMPA, FL - U.S. District Judge James S. Moody, Jr. today sentenced Beverly McFadden (23, Tampa) to six years and nine months in federal prison for her role in a stolen identity income tax refund scheme. As part of the sentence, the Court also entered a money judgment in the amount of $351,431.44.

On September 24, 2013, McFadden pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to steal government funds, and to one count of aggravated identity theft.

According to court documents, McFadden, who maintained an account with Suncoast Schools Federal Credit Union, conspired with a teller (Louren Velez) to cash 47 fraudulently obtained income tax refund checks, totaling more than $350,000, through that financial institution. McFadden also recruited Larry Walker, another account holder, to assist in the scheme.

On April 23, 2013, Walker pleaded guilty for his role in the conspiracy and was sentenced to time served, six months’ home detention, and a 3-year term of supervised release. Velez was charged by information on June 28, 2013.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation and the Tampa Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Bob Mosakowski.

Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge Susan C. Bucklew today sentenced Earl Rojelio Blanchett, Jr. (37, Tampa) to 10 years and 4 months in federal prison for tax fraud charges, including charges of aggravated identity theft.  As part of his sentence, the Court also entered a money judgment in the amount of $22,500.

Blanchett pleaded guilty to all fourteen counts of the indictment on October 29, 2013.

According to court documents and statements made at the sentencing hearing, in June and July 2013, Blanchett sold seven United States Treasury checks, with a face value of over $77,000, at a discounted price, to undercover law enforcement agents. These Treasury checks were issued as a result of tax returns filed in the names individuals who were victims of identity theft. The victims either did not authorize the filing of those returns, the issuance and cashing of the resulting Treasury checks, and/or confirmed that the Treasury checks were fraudulently and falsely endorsed in their names. Personal identifying information related to some of the stolen identities was found in a search of Blanchett’s residence, where he lived with his girlfriend. Inside the residence, agents also found thousands of other individuals’ personal identifying information in computers, ledgers and notebooks, along with notes about the filing of tax returns, debit cards, passwords, and user names. The information totaled over $7 million, with nearly $3 million confirmed by the IRS.  
 

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office and Tampa Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelley C. Howard-Allen.

Orlando, Florida, – Acting United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Marcus Dwayne Robertson (45) was found guilty yesterday of conspiring to defraud the Internal Revenue Service. This is Robertson’s second conviction in this District. On August 23, 2011, he was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and charged for being a previously convicted felon in possession of a firearm. Robertson pleaded guilty to that crime on January 5, 2012. He was then indicted, on March 14, 2012, for conspiring to defraud the IRS. A bench trial ensued in December 2013, in which he was convicted for that offense. Robertson faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison for both convictions. His sentencing hearing has been scheduled for April 14, 2014, before Senior U.S. District Judge Gregory A. Presnell.

According to court documents and evidence presented at Robertson’s trial and the sentencing of a co-conspirator (Jonathan Paul Jimenez), the FBI was investigating an international terrorism matter regarding the operation of a travel facilitation network by Robertson and others that sends individuals overseas to commit violent jihad. In November 2010, Jimenez relocated from New York to Central Florida, where he began training with Robertson in the skills necessary to participate in violent jihad overseas. The training included martial arts, firearm and knife training, reading the Quran, and learning Arabic. During Jimenez’s training, Robertson stressed that Jimenez needed to focus on the religious aspects of his training, prior to perfecting the skills needed to commit violent acts.

In late May and early June of 2011, Jimenez, with the assistance of Robertson and others, began making preparations for his overseas travel. Robertson assisted Jimenez with getting his photographs for his visa application and his vaccinations. On June 17, 2011, Jimenez departed Central Florida and traveled to New York by airplane, where he expected to get his visa and then travel overseas. 

During the course of the investigation, the FBI obtained evidence about the nature of Robertson’s training of Jimenez and the plan for Jimenez to travel overseas to engage in violent jihad. As part of the investigation, the FBI obtained consensually recorded conversations with Jimenez and others, in which Jimenez stated his goals. When interviewed by the FBI on September 22, 2011, Jimenez lied about making those statements. 

In order to have funds available for him when he was overseas, Robertson, Jimenez, and another individual conspired to submit a false 2010 tax return for Jimenez, in which Jimenez falsely claimed three of Robertson’s children as his dependents and falsely represented that he lived with each of the three children for all of the year 2010. As a result of those false representations, Jimenez obtained a refund from the IRS in the amount of $5,587.

On August 28, 2012, Jimenez pleaded guilty to making a false statement to a federal agency in a matter involving international terrorism and conspiring to defraud the IRS. On April 18, 2013, he was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison, ordered to serve a 3-year term of supervision following his release, and to pay $5,587 in restitution.

These cases were investigated by the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force and the Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation. They are being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg.

TAMPA, FL – Acting United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that Michelle Carducci (37, Tampa) today pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud affecting a financial institution and making false statements to a federal agency. She faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to court documents, in 2001, Carducci moved from Ohio to Florida and, in 2002, became a Florida-licensed mortgage broker. Subsequently, she entered into a conspiracy with a Florida-licensed real estate agent and a primarily Pinellas County-based developer. The real estate agent was recruiting buyers to purchase houses that were being “flipped” by the developer, through a series of companies. Buyers were falsely told that these deals would require no money from them. Instead, to hide the fact that the seller (the developer) was really providing closing funds (down payments) to otherwise unqualified buyers, Carducci, among other things, inflated the buyers’ assets on their loan-related documents.
Carducci’s role in the conspiracy is estimated to have caused losses between $400,000 and $1,000,000, for transactions that she handled in 2005 and 2006.

This case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Thomas N. Palermo.

Tampa, Florida – Acting United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the arrest and charging of David Harris Dunaway (58, Hawthorne) for being an individual adjudicated as mentally defective and having been committed to a mental institution, in possession of a firearm and ammunition. If convicted, Dunaway faces a maximum penalty of ten years in federal prison.

Dunaway was indicted on December 18, 2013.

According to the indictment, on or about October 9, 2013, Dunaway knowingly possessed a Smith & Wesson .40 caliber semi-automatic pistol and 50 rounds of ammunition. In 1992, he was found not guilty of homicide, by reason of insanity. Subsequently, Dunaway was involuntarily committed to a mental institution for five years. When arrested, in Alachua County, Florida, Dunaway had 37 guns and more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition in his vehicle.

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

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Carlton C. Gammons.

This is another case prosecuted as a part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” program - a nationwide, gun-violence reduction strategy.  Acting United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III, along with Julie Leon, Special Agent in Charge, ATF, 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 reduce violent crime and improve the quality of life in communities where law enforcement efforts are focused.

WASHINGTON – A south Florida woman who had been the president of CORF National Development Inc. has pleaded guilty for her involvement in a Medicare fraud scheme involving physical and occupational therapy services.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Mythili Raman of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Acting U.S. Attorney A. Lee Bentley III of the Middle District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Paul Wysopal of the FBI’s Tampa Field Office, and Special Agent in Charge Christopher Dennis of the U.S. Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) made the announcement.

Milagros Cruz, 42, pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida to conspiring to commit health care fraud.  She faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison when she is sentenced. 

According to court documents, Cruz conspired with others to execute a health care fraud scheme involving the submission of claims for reimbursement to Medicare for rehabilitation therapy services that were not legitimately prescribed by physicians and not legitimately provided to Medicare beneficiaries.  Cruz, as president of CORF National Development, located in Doral, Fla., paid cash kickbacks to Medicare beneficiaries who came to CORF National Development in exchange for using the beneficiaries’ identifying information in the fraud scheme.  Cruz would combine the Medicare beneficiaries’ identifying information with other billing information and provide the information to other conspirators.  These conspirators then converted the information into reimbursement claims submitted to Medicare in the name of a completely different clinic known as Renew Therapy Centers of Port St. Lucie LLC.  From January through August 2008, Cruz’s clinic received approximately $90,950 from Renew Therapy in connection with the fraud scheme.

This case is being investigated by the FBI and HHS-OIG and was brought as part of the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, under the supervision of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida.  This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Christopher J. Hunter of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section.

Since its inception in March 2007, the Medicare Fraud Strike Force, now operating in nine cities across the country, has charged more than 1,700 defendants who have collectively billed the Medicare program for more than $5.5 billion.  In addition, the HHS Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with the HHS-OIG, are taking steps to increase accountability and decrease the presence of fraudulent providers.

To learn more about the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Team (HEAT), go to: www.stopmedicarefraud.gov.

Jacksonville, Florida – Acting United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the return by a grand jury of two indictments charging individuals in Jacksonville, Florida with human trafficking offenses. The first indictment charges Clive Sephas Nelson (23, Jacksonville) with the commercial sex trafficking of a minor female, between on or about November 29, 2013 through on or about December 15, 2013, in the Middle District of Florida. Nelson was indicted on January 15, 2014. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of life in prison.

The second alleges that, between in or about December 2012 through on or about May 31, 2013, in the Middle District of Florida, Erick George Brooks (29, Jacksonville) committed commercial sex trafficking of an adult female through force, threats of force, fraud, and coercion. The indictment against Brooks was returned on November 14, 2013. He was arrested on December 4, 2013 and is awaiting a trial, currently scheduled for February 3, 2014. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison.

Both cases resulted from investigations conducted by a joint human trafficking task force comprised of investigators from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. Both offenses are charged under the Federal Human Trafficking Statute, 18 U.S.C. § 1591, part of the Trafficking and Violence Protection Act passed by the United States Congress, in 2000.

On December 31, 2013, President Obama issued a proclamation declaring the month of January 2014 as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month. In that proclamation, the President noted, “As we work to dismantle trafficking networks and help survivors rebuild their lives, we must also address the underlying forces that push so many into bondage. We must develop economies that create legitimate jobs, build a global sense of justice that says no child should ever be exploited, and empower our daughters and sons with the same chances to pursue their dreams.”

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

These cases were investigated by the FBI and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.  They will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mac D. Heavener, III.

Jacksonville, Florida – Acting United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the arrest and charge by criminal complaint of John Dewey Todd (60, Fernandina Beach) for producing and attempting to produce child pornography. If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years, up to 30 years in federal prison.             

According to the complaint, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Homeland Security Investigations and Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at the residence of Todd on November 15, 2013, in Fernandina Beach, Florida.  During the execution of the warrant, Todd voluntarily spoke with law enforcement and admitted to collecting child pornography for the past “couple years.” Todd explained that he saves his child pornography on two computers, discs, thumb drives and external hard drives. Law enforcement seized electronic media during their search and a preliminary examination of some of the seized materials revealed that they contained at least 12,000 files of child pornography. 

During a forensic examination of one thumb drive seized during the search, law enforcement recovered three videos of suspected child pornography. Two of the videos depict Todd adjusting a video camera that appears to be concealed in a plant or planter, focused on a bathtub. Two minor, prepubescent females are recorded with their genitalia displayed. 

A criminal complaint is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of the federal criminal laws, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.

The case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office, with the assistance from the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelly S. Karase.

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.  For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov and click on the tab "other resources."

Jacksonville, Florida – Acting United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces the unsealing of an indictment charging Anthony Eugene Preissig (47, St. Johns County) with stealing counterfeit currency from the United States Secret Service (USSS), passing it at a gas station, and later making false statements about his crimes. If convicted on all counts, Preissig faces a maximum penalty of up to 35 years in federal prison.

According to the indictment, Preissig was a USSS Special Agent assigned to investigate violations of federal criminal laws. Using his position, he stole counterfeit United States currency that the Marion County Sheriff’s Office had seized and submitted to the USSS - Jacksonville office. Preissig then took a counterfeit $100 bill and tried to use it at a gas station in St. Johns County. When confronted, he lied to law enforcement agents about his crimes. Preissig retired from the USSS in 2012.

David Nieland, Special Agent in Charge of the Miami Field Office, Department of Homeland Security, Office of Inspector General, said, “Whenever a law enforcement officer engages in illegal activity, it erodes the public trust. Such actions by few can tarnish the badges of the many who serve to protect America each day. Corruption remains a top priority of the DHS OIG and we remain committed to holding those who violate the public’s trust accountable for their illegal actions.”

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

This case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of the Inspector General, the United States Secret Service’s Inspections Division, and the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office.  It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Vincent A. Citro.

Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven today sentenced Rick Higgins (33, Oldsmar) to two years and nine months in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute Oxycodone. In addition, he was ordered to serve a 3-year term of supervision, following his incarceration. As part of the sentence, the court also entered a money judgment in the amount of $239,000, the proceeds of his Oxycodone distribution.

Higgins pleaded guilty on October 16, 2013.

According to court documents, over a period of two to three years, Higgins used the U.S. mail to send packages of Oxycodone to a co-conspirator in the Boston, Massachusetts area. Higgins received payments of over $239,000 from cash bank deposits made in Massachusetts, into accounts that he controlled. 

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelley C. Howard-Allen.

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell today sentenced Daniel Heffield (30, Orlando, Florida) to 25 years in federal prison for producing and possessing child pornography. The Court also ordered Heffield to serve a life term of supervised release, following his incarceration, and to register as a sex offender. As part of the sentence, Heffield was also ordered to forfeit his interest in the computers and camera that he used to commit the offenses.  

Heffield pleaded guilty on August 29, 2013.

According to court documents, Heffield produced and attempted to produce between 25 and 30 sexually explicit videos of at least nine prepubescent and pubescent girls, while they used the bathroom at his home. Heffield had built a device to secure a camera in the bathroom vanity drawer, opposite the toilet. The victims took piano lessons from Heffield’s mother, at Heffield’s house, and were surreptitiously recorded when they used the bathroom during their lessons. Heffield posted the videos of what he considered to be the best shots of the children’s naked genitalia, on the Internet. Homeland Security Investigations special agents located one of the videos during a child pornography investigation in Maine, and subsequently were able to identify a six year-old child.

In an unrelated investigation, agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) discovered that Heffield was a prolific distributer of child pornography, after they downloaded compressed files containing thousands of images depicting the sexual exploitation of prepubescent and pubescent girls that Heffield had posted to a newsgroup. In April 2013, agents executed a search warrant at Heffield’s home and located over 1300 images of child pornography that Heffield had stored on three different hard drives. Heffield admitted to producing, distributing and possessing child pornography, and said that he had been viewing child pornography for about the past fifteen years. Heffield said that he uploaded child pornography to a newsgroup and encouraged and taught others to do the same because it was a faster and easier way to obtain child pornography. 

"The exploitation of children is one of the most heinous crimes we investigate," said Susan McCormick, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations Tampa. "Innocent, unsuspecting children are violated, and their images are traded online for eternity. Our special agents take crimes against children very seriously, and we ensure that child pornographers are sentenced to the fullest extent of the law."
FBI Special Agent in Charge Paul Wysopal said, “The facts of this case gives you a glimpse into the mind of a child predator, and the lengths to which such an individual will go in order to take advantage of our children. It is an ugly reminder to parents that these predators will exploit children while hiding in the shadows of restrooms and the Internet.  It is our job as law enforcement officers to drag them out of the shadows and we will continue to do so.”

“Investigations such as this require the ongoing cooperation of our law enforcement partners, as was demonstrated in this case,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Lee Bentley. “Partnerships like these allow us to bring the proper resources to bear against these egregious crimes.”

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Karen L. Gable.

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.  For more information about internet safety education, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov and click on the tab "other resources."

Orlando, FL – Acting United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that a federal jury today found Dewarren Antoine Lewis, a/k/a “Fella” (28, Orlando), guilty of two counts of bank robbery with assault and two counts of using and carrying a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. Lewis faces a maximum penalty of 25 years in federal prison on the bank robbery convictions, followed by a mandatory minimum consecutive penalty of 32 years in federal prison on the firearms convictions.  His sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 4, 2013.

Lewis was indicted on September 4, 2013.

According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, on January 9, 2013, Lewis robbed the Wells Fargo Bank in Orlando, at gunpoint, before fleeing with over $9,000.  On March 20, 2013, he robbed the Regions Bank in Orlando. As he did in the Wells Fargo robbery, Lewis rushed into the bank, covered from head to toe, wearing a stocking over his face. He then pointed his gun at bank employees, forcing his way behind the teller line, filling his bag with the bank’s money. After fleeing the bank, a witness saw Lewis take off his disguise and drive away from the scene of the crime. Lewis then led police on a high speed chase through the streets of Orlando, before bailing out of his car and running away on foot. When finally apprehended by Orange County deputies, Lewis was carrying a bag filled with over $23,000, which he had just stolen from the Regions Bank.  

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 Attorney Joseph M. Schuster.

Tampa, FL – U.S. District Judge James D. Whittemore yesterday sentenced Anthony Simms (37, formerly of Riverview) to 8 years’ imprisonment, after being convicted on seven counts of passing forged Treasury checks, seven counts of theft of government property, and seven counts of aggravated identity theft. The Court also entered a forfeiture money judgment and restitution in the amount of nearly $64,000, representing the proceeds from the seven cashed checks. 
Simms pleaded guilty on October 15, 2013.  

According to court documents, from November 9, 2011 through January 25, 2012, Simms deposited 57 third-party tax refund Treasury checks and 8 tax refund cashier’s checks into his business account at SunTrust Bank, through various ATMs located in the Tampa area. Simms was the sole signatory on the business account and the only one who used the ATM card for these deposits. He was not authorized or entitled to deposit or cash these checks and knew that the signatures of the payees on the back of the checks were forged. The payees on the Treasury checks did not know or have any dealings with Simms or his business, and did not authorize any checks, in their names, to be deposited into his account. Some payees on the Treasury checks were deceased. The total amount of money deposited into Simms’s account through these 65 tax refund checks totaled $449,689. Simms also opened other business accounts at two other local banks and attempted to deposit over $15,000 of Treasury checks into those accounts.

This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Assistant United States Attorney Kelley C. Howard-Allen.

Orlando, Florida –Senior U.S. District Judge Gregory A. Presnell yesterday sentenced Robert Gordon Shaw (37, Deleon Springs) to 7 years in federal prison for armed bank robbery. Shaw pleaded guilty on August 1, 2013.

According to court documents, on April 19, 2013, Shaw conspired with another individual (Matthew Anthony Cosimini) to rob a Regions Bank in Sanford, Florida. During the course of the robbery, they displayed a fake explosive detonation device, passed a note to a bank teller demanding money, and indicated that an explosive had been placed inside the bank. While committing the offense, Shaw and Cosimini also possessed a semiautomatic pistol with ammunition.

After Shaw passed the demand note and displayed the detonation device, the bank teller handed Shaw approximately $14,098 in bank funds. Shaw and Cosimini fled in a stolen vehicle as responding officers from the Sanford Police Department pursued them. During the pursuit, Shaw caused damage to both a police vehicle and a civilian's vehicle. Police officers apprehended Shaw and Cosimini approximately one mile from the bank and recovered the semiautomatic handgun and fake detonation device from the stolen vehicle.

Further investigation revealed that the detonation device was a hoax and that there were no explosives inside the bank. The investigation also determined that Cosimini and Shaw had planned to rob the bank together.

Cosimini pleaded guilty to his role in the offense on August 29, 2013. He was sentenced on November 25, 2013, to 6 ½ years in federal prison.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the Sanford Police Department and the Seminole County Sheriff's Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Andrew C. Searle.

WASHINGTON - The government has intervened in eight False Claims Act lawsuits against Health Management Associates Inc. (HMA) alleging that HMA billed federal health care programs for medically unnecessary inpatient admissions from the emergency departments at HMA hospitals and paid remuneration to physicians in exchange for patient referrals, the Justice Department announced today.  The government also has joined in the allegations in one of these lawsuits that Gary Newsome, HMA’s former CEO, directed HMA’s corporate practice of pressuring emergency department physicians and hospital administrators to raise inpatient admission rates, regardless of medical necessity.  HMA operates 71 hospitals in 15 states: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and West Virginia. 

“The Department of Justice is committed to ensuring that health care providers who attempt to misuse federal health care programs for their own profit are held accountable,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division Stuart F. Delery.  “Schemes such as this one can contribute significantly to the rising cost of delivering health care and create needless patient risk.”

The lawsuits allege that HMA’s corporate officers, at the direction of Newsome, exerted significant pressure on doctors in the emergency department to admit patients who could have been placed in observation, treated as outpatients or discharged, and that this resulted in the submission of inflated or false claims to federal health care programs.  One lawsuit also alleges that patients were improperly admitted for scheduled surgical procedures that should have been done on an outpatient basis.  The complaints further allege that HMA paid kickbacks, either in the form of bonuses or awarded contracts, to physician groups staffing HMA emergency rooms to induce the physicians to admit patients unnecessarily.

In addition, the lawsuits allege that HMA paid kickbacks to other physician groups to induce referrals.  For example, HMA allegedly provided improper remuneration, both through the provision of free office space and staffing and through direct payments, to Primary Care Associates, a physician practice group in Port Charlotte, Fla., in exchange for referrals to two HMA hospitals in Florida.  HMA also allegedly paid kickbacks to physicians in Lancaster, Pa., by paying inflated prices for physician-owned assets, providing sham medical directorship contracts and selling assets to physicians for below fair market value.

The Anti-Kickback Statute prohibits offering, paying, soliciting or receiving remuneration to induce referrals of items or services covered by Medicare, Medicaid and other federally funded programs.  The Stark Statute prohibits a hospital from submitting claims for patient referrals made by a physician with whom the hospital has an improper financial arrangement.  Both the Anti-Kickback Statute and Stark Statute are intended to ensure that a physician’s medical judgment is not compromised by improper financial incentives and is instead based on the best interests of the patient. 

“This intervention decision marks the culmination of a lengthy and comprehensive investigation into a variety of serious fraud allegations against one of our district’s largest health care providers,” said Acting U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida A. Lee Bentley III.  “We hope that this case will serve as a reminder to our provider community that this office is fully engaged in the struggle against misconduct of this kind.”

“Improper hospital admissions cost the government millions of dollars in unnecessary fees and subject patients to excessive treatment and needless risk, driving up the cost of health care,” said U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina Anne M. Tompkins.  “The government will pursue aggressively providers that boost their profits at the expense of Medicare and other government programs.”

“Unlawful financial relationships between hospitals and physicians solely to increase referrals are, unfortunately, a common practice that corrupts the health care system,” said U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida Wifredo A. Ferrer.  “The system also suffers a direct financial hit when hospitals fraudulently increase admissions where they are not indicated, solely to benefit hospitals’ bottom line.  We will not relent in our efforts to combat these kinds of fraudulent schemes and recover funds for the Medicare program.”

“HMA’s submission of claims to Medicare, Medicaid and TRICARE for unnecessary inpatient stays is a serious matter that threatens the integrity of our entire health care system, and the end result is that those who need health care cannot afford it,” said U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia Michael J. Moore.  “The Middle District of Georgia is committed to fighting health care fraud.”

“Investigations such as these are a very high priority for the FBI because of the potential impact to the nation’s health care system and to the public,” said FBI Assistant Director Ron Hosko.  “Because of the priority nature of these cases as well as their complexity, we have created a centralized team to provide nationwide support to our field offices called the Major Provider Response Team.  The FBI is committed to working with our partners in these types of investigations and appreciates the public’s involvement in the process.”

The lawsuits were filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private parties to sue on behalf of the government when they believe that defendants submitted false claims for government funds and to receive a share of any recovery.  The False Claims Act also permits the government to intervene in such lawsuits, as it has done in these cases.  The eight lawsuits are pending in the Southern and Middle Districts of Florida, Middle District of Georgia, Northern District of Illinois, Western District of North Carolina, Eastern District of Pennsylvania and District of South Carolina.

The government’s intervention in these matters illustrates its emphasis on combating health care fraud and marks another achievement for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team (HEAT) initiative, which was announced in May 2009 by Attorney General Eric Holder and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.  The partnership between the two departments has focused efforts to reduce and prevent Medicare and Medicaid financial fraud through enhanced cooperation.  One of the most powerful tools in this effort is the False Claims Act.  Since January 2009, the Justice Department has recovered a total of more than $17 billion through False Claims Act cases, with more than $12.2 billion of that amount recovered in cases involving fraud against federal health care programs.

These matters were investigated by the Commercial Litigation Branch of the Justice Department’s Civil Division; the U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Southern and Middle Districts of Florida, Middle District of Georgia, Northern District of Illinois, Western District of North Carolina, Middle and Eastern Districts of Pennsylvania and District of South Carolina; the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The cases are captioned United States ex rel. Brummer v. Health Mgmt. Assocs. Inc., et al.,3-09-cv-135 (CDL)(M.D. Ga.); United States ex rel. Williams v. Health Mgmt. Assocs. Inc. et al., 3:12-cv-151(M.D. Ga.); United States ex rel. Plantz v. Health Mgmt. Assocs. Inc., et al., 13C-1212(N.D. Ill.); United States ex rel. Miller v. Health Mgmt. Assocs. Inc., et al., 10-3007 (E.D. Pa.); United States ex rel. Mason v. Health Mgmt. Assocs. Inc., et al., 3:10-CV-472-GCM (W.D.N.C.); United States ex rel. Nurkin v. Health Mgmt. Assocs. Inc., et al., 2:11-cv-14-FtM-29DNF (M.D. Fla.); United States ex rel. Jacqueline Meyer & Cowling v. Health Mgmt. Assocs. Inc., et al.; 0:11-cv-01713-JFA (D.S.C.) and United States ex rel. Paul Meyer v. Health Mgmt. Assocs. Inc., et al.,11-62445 cv-Williams (S.D. Fla.).

The claims asserted against HMA and Newsome are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.

Fort Myers, Florida U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell today sentenced former Lee County Commissioner Tammara Ann Hall (53, Cape Coral) to six months in federal prison on her conviction for wire fraud. She was also ordered to serve a 3-year term of supervised release, following her release from prison. Special conditions of supervision include a 90-day term of home confinement, and 250 hours of community service. The court also ordered a money judgment in the amount of $33,756, and for Hall to pay restitution in the same amount. Hall was ordered to report to the Federal Bureau of Prisons on or before February 14, 2014. A separate restitution hearing will be held on March 14, 2014.  

Hall pleaded guilty to the charge on October 3, 2013.  

According to court documents, Hall was a Lee County Commissioner running for re-election in the November 2010 General Election. From November 2009 to November 2010, Hall diverted and embezzled approximately $33,756 that was contributed by donors, to the Tammy Hall campaign fund. Hall used the money for personal expenditures unrelated to the campaign. She completed Florida Department of State campaign fund quarterly reports and failed to disclose that she had diverted campaign contributions to pay for personal expenses. Hall falsely represented the nature of the expenditures, or omitted certain donor campaign contribution checks from the quarterly reports. Hall stole from her campaign fund by electronically transferring funds from the campaign bank account, into to her personal bank account at Wachovia Bank, by writing checks from the campaign bank account and depositing the checks into her personal bank account, and by depositing certain campaign contribution checks from donors directly into her personal bank account.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey F. Michelland.

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell last month sentenced Kenneth Pointon (52) and Margaret Pointon (55), both of Orlando, to federal prison for making a false refund claim to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in the amount of $509,420. Kenneth Pointon, who was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison, was also sentenced for obstructing the due administration of the Internal Revenue laws.  Margaret Pointon was sentenced to 13 months in federal prison. Both were also ordered to serve a 3-year term of supervised release, following their release from prison, and to pay $485,355 in restitution. Kenneth Pointon was a corrections officer at the Central Florida Reception Center at the time of the offense, which occurred in 2009.

Kenneth Pointon and Margaret Pointon were found guilty by a jury on October 3, 2013, following a three-day trial.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, in 2008, Kenneth and Margaret Pointon participated in a scheme in which taxpayers report exaggerated amounts of taxable income and withholdings on their Forms 1040 and other documents, causing the IRS to issue improper refunds.

The Pointons followed this scheme by falsely reporting $827,646 in taxable interest, and $788,094 in inflated tax withholdings, on their 2008 Form 1040. In reality, the Pointons did not earn any taxable interest in 2008 and only earned $65,342 in taxable income. 

In response to their fraudulent tax forms, the IRS issued a refund check in the amount of $509,420 to the Pointons. In May 2009, the Pointons received the check and deposited it into a newly-created bank account in Dunedin, Florida. Within a span of five months, they made numerous transfers between bank accounts. The IRS Collection Division was able to recover only $24,060 of the refund received by the Pointons, resulting in a loss of $485,355 to taxpayers.

During the time period in which the IRS Collection Division was attempting to recover the refund, Kenneth Pointon sent several frivolous and obstructive documents to the IRS, in order to settle his tax liability and avoid liens and levies. 

This case was investigated by Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation.  It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney E. Jackson Boggs Jr.

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington has sentenced Keire Terrell Harvey (24, Clearwater) to 10 years and 10 months in federal prison for possession with intent to distribute 28 grams or more of crack cocaine. 

Harvey pleaded guilty on October 15, 2013.

According to court documents, from June 2, 2013 to July 19, 2013, Harvey sold crack cocaine to an undercover Largo Police Department Detective, on five occasions. On July 29, 2013, Harvey was arrested when he showed up to a location, in Largo, to make another sale of crack cocaine to the undercover detective. At the time of his arrest Harvey was in possession of 32.8 grams of crack cocaine, which he intended to sell.    

This case was investigated by the Largo Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez.

Tampa, FL – Acting United States Attorney A. Lee Bentley, III announces that U.S. District Judge Richard A. Lazzara today sentenced Jameshia Mack (27, Tampa) to 75 months in federal prison for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft for filing fraudulent tax returns using stolen personal identifying information.  The court also sentenced Mack to an additional 14 months in federal prison, to run consecutive to the 75 month sentence, for committing these crimes while on supervised release from a previous federal sentence for aggravated identity theft in the Western District of Kentucky, for a total sentence of imprisonment of 7 years, 5 months. As part of her sentence, the court entered a money judgment in the amount of $100,135 against Mack, representing the proceeds she received from the scheme, and ordered her to pay restitution in that amount to the Internal Revenue Service.

Mack pleaded guilty on October 17, 2013.  According to court documents, Mack, who is from Tampa, was on federal supervised release in 2011 after serving a prison term for bank fraud and aggravated identity theft in the Western District of Kentucky. After returning to the Tampa area, she defrauded the IRS by filing false and fraudulent income tax returns in her own and other persons’ names, and directed that the returns be put onto prepaid debit cards. Mack then withdrew cash from the debit cards or spent the funds on retail purchases, a luxury automobile, and casino transactions.  When the Tampa Police Department encountered Mack during a traffic stop, she had stacks of cash along with multiple credit cards and prepaid debit cards in other peoples’ names. 

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation and the Tampa Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Josephine W. Thomas.