Middle District of Florida
Press releases recorded for this federal judicial district.
Arcadia Felon Sentenced to Six Years in Federal Prison for Unlawfully Possessing a Loaded FirearmRead the Press Release
Fort Myers, Florida – Esteban Garcia-Gutierrez (31, Arcadia) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell to six years in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a previously convicted felon. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, on April 17, 2025, a trooper with the Florida Highway Patrol conducted a routine traffic stop on a vehicle being driven by Garcia-Gutierrez. During the traffic stop, the trooper observed Garcia-Gutierrez—a multi-time convicted felon—unlawfully possessing a loaded .45 caliber pistol, which was seized. Garcia-Gutierrez’s prior criminal history includes convictions and state prison sentences for aggravated battery and felony battery. As a convicted felon he is prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition under federal law.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Florida Highway Patrol, and the DeSoto County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Simon Eth.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
Two Men Sentenced to Consecutive Life Terms Plus 100 Years for Contract Killing of 17-Year-Old GirlRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Lenard White (38), a/k/a “Len,” “Mike Williams,” and “Stick” and Sheldon Robinson (22), a/k/a “Poboy,” have each been sentenced by U.S. District Judge William Jung to two consecutive terms of life imprisonment, plus 100 years, for the 2023 murder of I.S. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
On October 29, 2025, a federal jury found both men guilty of all charges, including conspiracy to commit murder for hire, murder for hire, premeditated first degree murder, discharge of a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence which caused the death of I.S., discharge of a firearm in furtherance of a violent crime, tampering with witnesses, and obstruction of justice.
According to evidence presented at trial, on February 6, 2023, I.S., a 17-year-old high school student and a member of her school’s tennis team and ROTC program, and her mother, L.P., reported to the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office that I.S. had been sexually assaulted. The next day, Robinson came to their house and knocked on the door. When the door was opened, Robinson fired a barrage of gunshots at I.S. and L.P., killing I.S. The bullet that killed I.S. struck her in the back as she ran away from her front door for help. L.P. was struck several times but survived. L.P. collapsed on the ground and watched her daughter die.
The evidence showed the murder was orchestrated by White, the man who had sexually assaulted her, and who had left the state prior to her murder to give himself an alibi. His cousin, Robinson, committed the murder for $6,000.
The Hernando County Sheriff’s Office, working alongside the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) immediately began investigating the case. After more than 70 federal and state search warrants, investigators obtained a step-by-step blueprint for how Robinson killed I.S., including the individuals that he had recruited to help him carry it out. Six months after I.S.’s murder, and as the investigation was unfolding, detectives from the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office and ATF agents executed a second search warrant in Robinson’s home. Buried in a wooded area behind his home, investigators recovered the gun Robinson used to murder I.S.
As the investigation continued, White and Robinson repeatedly attempted to hinder the investigation by disposing of evidence, tampering with witnesses, obstructing justice, and making false statements to law enforcement. The two also discussed plans of having another witness against them killed.
A third defendant, Keshawn Woods, previously pleaded guilty to his role in the murder of I.S. On January 13, 2026, Woods was sentenced to 17 years in federal prison.
This case was investigated by the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with substantial assistance from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the State Attorney’s Office for the Fifth Judicial Circuit. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Diego F. Novaes and Samantha Newman.
Nicaraguan National Sentenced to Federal Prison for Forcibly Resisting Federal Agents in Extended Struggle During Immigration ArrestRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Denis Napoleon Corea-Miranda (22) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Thomas Barber to one year and six months in federal prison for forcibly resisting, opposing, or impeding federal officers. Corea-Miranda pleaded guilty on December 2, 2025. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court records, on August 26, 2025, agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) attempted to arrest Corea-Miranda in connection with a final order of removal from the United States. While being questioned by agents, Corea-Miranda attempted to flee which led to an extended struggle between agents and Corea-Miranda. During the struggle, Corea-Miranda ended up on top of the agents and held them to the ground. An ICE agent suffered a dislocated shoulder during the attempt to arrest Corea-Miranda. Corea-Miranda ultimately fled on foot before later being arrested by deputies from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.
This case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), and the Polk County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeff Chang.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
Lakeland Man Who Fired Bullets That Killed 70-Year-Old-Grandmother and Injured 13-Year-Old Girl in 2020 Christmas Eve Shootout Pleads GuiltyRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida –Taqiy Lewis (27, Lakeland) has pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon in connection with a shooting. Lewis faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison. United States Attorney Gregory Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, on December 24, 2020, 70-year-old M.C. was outside her Lakeland home with her family, including young children. At approximately 5:30 p.m., Lewis and others engaged in a shootout just outside M.C.’s residence. M.C. was struck twice and killed. 13-year-old A.L. was also shot and wounded. More than two years later, on February 9, 2023, during an unrelated investigation, ATF agents and officers from the Lakeland Police Department recovered a Kahr CM9 9mm pistol while executing a search warrant. Forensic testing using the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (“NIBIN”) confirmed that this firearm was the one used to kill M.C. and injure A.L. Further investigation revealed that six casings collected from the crime scene, two spent projectiles recovered from a home, and a bullet recovered from M.C.’s body were all fired by Lewis and the Kahr CM9 pistol he possessed. At the time of the shooting, Lewis was a convicted felon and prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Lakeland Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Diego F. Novaes.
Convicted Rapist Who Committed Armed Robberies in Tampa While on Parole for New Jersey Robberies Sentenced to 27 Years in Federal PrisonRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Jose Rodriguez (63) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Steven Merryday to 27 years in federal prison for robbery and use of a firearm during the commission of those robberies. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, on August 4, 2024, Rodriguez entered a pizza shop in Tampa, approached the employees, pointed a pistol at them, and demanded money. The three employees fled through the back of the store.
A month later, on September 11, 2024, Rodriguez returned to the same shopping plaza. This time, he went inside a cellphone store, pointed a firearm at its employees and told them, “don’t move or I’ll shoot you.” Rodriguez ultimately made out with little money and fled. Detectives from the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office immediately responded to the scene. Working alongside ATF agents, they canvassed the scene, collected surveillance footage from nearby businesses, and identified the vehicle used by Rodriguez during the robbery.
Two days later, investigators found Rodriguez, his car, and executed a federal search warrant at his home. Agents recovered the two-tone .45 caliber Kahr pistol Rodriguez had used to commit the robberies. A National Crime Information Center query revealed that Rodriguez had stolen the firearm from a terminally ill man in Pennsylvania. Rodriguez also robbed that man of his car, cash, and personal items.
Rodriguez had previously been convicted of three different robberies, as well as rape. At the time he committed these offenses, Rodriguez was on parole out of the state of New Jersey for robbery.
This case was investigated by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Diego F. Novaes.
Azerbaijani National Indicted for $1 Million Wire Fraud and Money Laundering Offense Against the United States Postal ServiceRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – Khayyam Arif Oglu Farajov (age 40) has been charged by indictment with five counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison for each count. The indictment also notifies Farajov that the United States intends to forfeit two personal investment accounts, seized by the United States, which were involved in the money laundering and are alleged to contain the proceeds of the offenses. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to the indictment, Farajov owned and operated a freight brokerage company called Talishco LLC. In May 2022, Farajov enrolled in the United States Postal Service’s (USPS) Freight Auction program. Through Freight Auction, Farajov bid on and was awarded hundreds of contracts to transport U.S. Mail across the country on behalf of the USPS. For the majority of these contracts, Farajov failed to transport the mail or hire anyone else to do so, making false excuses to the USPS about why his trucks had not arrived on schedule. Despite failing to deliver the loads, Farajov would then log back into Freight Auction, manually enter bogus delivery information, and get paid.
Farajov obtained more than $1 million from this scheme between June 2022 and January 2023. After he received the money, he funneled it through a series of bank accounts belonging to shell companies he owned. After reconsolidating the fraud proceeds into two personal investment brokerage accounts, he invested the fraud proceeds in the stock market for his personal enrichment.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the USPS Office of Inspector General. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Richard Varadan. Assistant United States Nicole Andrejko is handling the forfeiture.
Apollo Beach Businessman Charged with COVID-19 FraudRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL – Caleb Walsh (36, Apollo Beach) has been charged by federal indictment with bank fraud, wire fraud, and illegal monetary transactions. If convicted on all counts, Walsh faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison. The indictment also notifies Walsh that the United States intends to forfeit a Mercedes Benz G-Wagon, a hotel, and cryptocurrency, which are alleged to be traceable to proceeds of the offense. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to the indictment, between March 2020 and March 2021, Walsh devised a scheme to defraud multiple federally-insured financial institutions and another lender by submitting false and fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan applications in the names of companies that he controlled. Walsh misrepresented the number of employees, average monthly payroll costs, and falsely certified that the PPP funds would be used for permissible expenses. In furtherance of his scheme, Walsh also submitted false and fraudulent IRS tax forms showing his companies had purportedly paid millions of dollars in payroll as well as submitting altered and/or fictitious bank statements in the names of his companies. PPP loans were one of the sources of economic relief provided by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
Walsh used the fraudulently obtained PPP proceeds to illegally purchase a luxury vehicle, invest in a hotel in Nebraska, purchase cryptocurrency, and purchase private jet flights to Mexico for him and his family.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
In May 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The task force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts.
This case was investigated by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation – Office of Inspector General, IRS Criminal Investigation, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the U.S. Small Business Administration – Office of Inspector General. It will be prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Chris Poor.
Anyone with information about allegations of attempted fraud involving COVID-19 can report it by contacting the Justice Department’s National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) Hotline via the NCDF Web Complaint Form at www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud/ncdf-disaster-complaint-form.
Port Charlotte Man Sentenced to 24 Years for Producing Child Sexual Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Tyler Kuhn (30, Port Charlotte) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Mary Scriven to 24 years in federal prison for producing child sexual abuse material. Kuhn pleaded guilty in December 2025. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, in October 2019, Kuhn engaged in an online conversation with another individual. During the conversation, Kuhn produced a video and image of child sexual abuse material involving himself and a toddler. Kuhn distributed this video and image over the internet, to the individual to whom he was speaking.
This case was investigated by the FBI – Tampa and Houston Field Offices, and the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ilyssa M. Spergel.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Jacksonville Man Indicted for Attempting to Entice a 13-Year-Old Child to Engage in Sexual ActivityRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – Adeis Jonathan Francis (25, Jacksonville) has been charged by indictment with attempted enticement of a child to engage in sexual activity. If convicted, Francis faces a minimum penalty of 10 years, up to life, in federal prison and a potential lifetime term of supervised release. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to the indictment and other court documents, between February 17 and March 6, 2026, an FBI agent (UC), posing as a 13-year-old child, conducted an undercover operation in Jacksonville and Pensacola using an online social media application (“app”) to identify adults who were seeking to make online contact with and engage in sexual activity with children. During this period, UC and app user “Jay” exchanged several online messages on the app and by text messaging. After UC advised “Jay” that the “child” was 13 years old, “Jay,” who was subsequently identified as Francis, asked the “child” if “she” was ok talking with him, and requested the “child” to send him photos.
On March 5, 2026, Francis asked the “child” if she was a “virgin” and texted, “I can show you how to have sex ...” Francis also described by text message the sexual acts that he wanted to perform on the “child.” After more text conversations discussing his plans and desire to meet the “child” in person for sex, on March 6, 2026, Francis boarded a bus in Jacksonville and rode to the vicinity of the “child’s” purported residence, where he was arrested by FBI agents.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Jacksonville and Pensacola. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.
It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in 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, rescue, and seek justice for child victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Hillsborough County High School Teacher Sentenced to Prison for Conspiring to Provide Firearms to Trinidad-Based Transnational Criminal OrganizationRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Shannon Nicole Samlalsingh (47, Temple Terrace) was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge William F. Jung to one year and one day in federal prison for conspiracy to make false statements to a firearms dealer. The court also ordered Samlalsingh to forfeit the firearms purchased as a result of the offense. Samlalsingh pleaded guilty on June 20, 2025. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, Samlalsingh, then a Hillsborough County high school teacher, bought seven firearms for a Trinidad-based transnational criminal organization. Samlalsingh falsely stated on Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives forms that those firearms were for her. In actuality, Samlalsingh gave the firearms to members of the transnational criminal organization. Those individuals then smuggled the firearms into Trinidad.
On April 21, 2022, Trinidad authorities seized a shipment from the United States containing two punching bags and other goods at Piarco International Airport. Concealed within the two punching bags were approximately eleven 9mm pistols, two .38 caliber special revolvers, a 12-gauge semi-automatic shotgun, three AR-15 barrel foregrips, 19 lower pistol grip assemblies, 11 forearm bolt assemblies, three AR-15-style barrels with forearm grips, 32 AR-15 magazines, one AR-15 drum magazine, 470 rounds of AR-15 ammunition, 34 9mm magazines, three 9mm drum magazines, 284 9mm rounds, fifteen .38 caliber rounds, 36 shells, six magazine couplers, and two shotgun chokes. Samlalsingh had purchased four of the seized firearms: a SAR-9 9mm pistol, a Ruger-9 9mm pistol, a Taurus G3 9mm pistol, and a Taurus G2C 9mm pistol.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, including HSI’s Attaché, Caribbean, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with assistance provided by the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (Transnational Organized Crime Unit and Special Investigations Unit), United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, United States Customs and Border Protection, and the United States Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security, Office of Export Enforcement. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam W. McCall.
Volusia County Man Pleads Guilty to Attempting to Entice a 13-Year-Old Child to Produce Child Sexual Abuse PhotosRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – Shane Christopher Abrams (38, Deland) has pleaded guilty to attempting to entice a 13-year-old child to produce and send him photos depicting her own sexual abuse. Abrams faces a minimum penalty of 15 years, up to 30 years, in federal prison and a potential life term of supervised release. His sentencing hearing has been scheduled for June 25, 2026. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, on April 3, 2024, an undercover FBI agent posing as a 13-year-old child engaged in text conversation on an online social media application with a user named “Malicious_Malediction,” who was subsequently identified as Abrams. During this conversation, the “child” advised that “she” was 13 years old, and Abrams asked “her” inappropriate questions about “her” body. The next day, the conversation between Abrams and the “child” continued by text messaging using cellphones. Between April 4 and April 20, 2024, Abrams and the “child” exchanged numerous text messages. On multiple occasions during their text conversation, Abrams solicited the “child” to produce and send him photos of “her” genitalia, giving the “child” explicit instructions as to how to comply with his demands. As part of his efforts to entice the “child” to take and send him sexually explicit photos of “herself,” Abrams sent the “child” an explicit video and several photos.
On May 20, 2024, Abrams was arrested by FBI agents in a parking lot near his workplace in South Daytona.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.
It is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by the United States Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify, rescue, and seek justice for child victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Jacksonville Man Sentenced to 28 Months in Federal Prison for Threatening a Witness on FacebookRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – Chief U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard has sentenced Jesse Lee McKenzie (43, Jacksonville) to 28 months in federal prison for threatening to retaliate against a witness in a federal case. McKenzie pleaded guilty on October 28, 2025. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, an associate of McKenzie was indicted for distribution of methamphetamine, a federal offense. In July 2025, McKenzie made a post to his Facebook page in which he identified a witness in that drug trafficking case, both by name and by posting a photo of the witness. In the same post, McKenzie stated the witness was a “snitch” and threatened physical harm, including that McKenzie would “wire that snitch box up” in retaliation for the witness’s involvement in the drug trafficking case. McKenzie also solicited information about the witness’s whereabouts by stating he would “tip” in exchange for information about the witness’s location.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelli Swaney.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).
Federal Jury Finds Tampa Convicted Felon Guilty of Possessing a Firearm Under the Armed Career Criminal ActRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – A federal jury has found Shannon Pernell Brown (40, Tampa) guilty of possession of a firearm or ammunition by a convicted felon and possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute it. Brown faces a minimum penalty of 15 years, up to life, in federal prison under the Armed Career Criminal Act. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for September 3, 2026. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to evidence presented at trial, on August 31, 2024, Brown attempted to flee from officers from the Tampa Police Department on an electric bicycle after they attempted to stop him for a traffic violation. Brown subsequently lost control of the bicycle as he turned a corner and crashed. Officers detained him and located more than a pound of marijuana in multiple packages along with a digital scale in a backpack that he was wearing. Officers also recovered a loaded Glock handgun in a separate satchel that Brown was wearing across his chest.
Brown had previously been convicted of multiple felony offenses, including trafficking in cocaine and two convictions for possession of cocaine with the intent to sell or deliver, each of which occurred on a different occasion. As a convicted felon, Brown is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition under federal law.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Tampa Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeff Chang.
Mexican National Pleads Guilty to Racketeering Conspiracy Involving the Forced Labor of Mexican WorkersRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL — Alexander Villatoro Moreno, age 53, also known as Quichi, pleaded guilty in federal court in Tampa, Florida, to conspiracy under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. A federal grand jury in the Middle District of Florida had previously returned a six-count indictment against multiple defendants for their roles in the conspiracy, which victimized Mexican H-2A workers who, between 2015 and 2017, had worked in the United States harvesting fruits, vegetables and other agricultural products.
“Exploiting our nation’s immigration laws to victimize people seeking legitimate employment is not only illegal but unconscionable,” said U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida Gregory W. Kehoe. “The conspirators in this case deliberately deceived and trafficked individuals into the United States, then subjected them to deplorable conditions for profit. Diligent investigation and cooperation by our law enforcement partners assured that these criminals were brought to justice.”
According to court documents, Villatoro Moreno and his co-defendants operated and managed Los Villatoros Harvesting (LVH), a farm labor contracting company, that functioned as a criminal enterprise compelling victims to work in Florida, Kentucky, Indiana, Georgia and North Carolina. Villatoro Moreno and his co-defendants fraudulently recruited Mexican nationals to come into the United States on short-term, H-2A, agricultural visas and misled the United States to secure visas for the victims. Villatoro Moreno and his co-defendants charged workers exorbitant recruitment fees to work for LVH and lied to the victims about how much they would be paid, the hours they would work, the working conditions and the reimbursement they would receive for paying recruitment fees and other expenses. The workers were then compelled to provide long hours of physically demanding agricultural labor, six to seven days a week, for far less pay than they were entitled to under the law.
In addition to the work conditions, Villatoro Moreno and his co-defendants used various coercive means to compel the victims’ labor, including imposing debts on workers; confiscating the workers’ passports; subjecting workers to crowded, unsanitary and degrading living conditions; verbally abusing and humiliating the workers; threatening workers with arrest, jailtime and deportation; isolating workers by preventing them from interacting with anyone other than LVH employees; and threatening to physically harm the workers’ family members back in Mexico if the workers failed to comply with their demands.
When officials began investigating, Villatoro Moreno obstructed the federal investigation by helping to prepare false payroll information to conceal underpayments to the workers and distributing fake reimbursement receipts to the victims to make it appear that LVH was complying with the law by reimbursing the workers for their travel-related expenses.
Villatoro Moreno’s four co-defendants previously pleaded guilty in connection with their roles in the scheme. Bladimir Moreno, Alexander Villatoro Moreno’s brother, owned LVH and pleaded guilty in 2022 to conspiracy to violate the RICO Act and conspiracy to commit forced labor. Efrain Cabrera Rodas and Christina Gamez, LVH supervisors, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the RICO Act while Guadalupe Mendes Mendoza, another LVH supervisor, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to obstruct a federal investigation. In 2022, Bladimir Moreno was sentenced to 118 months in prison and ordered to pay over $175,000 in restitution to the victims while Rodas and Gamez were sentenced to 41 months and 37 months in prison, respectively. Mendoza was also sentenced in 2022 to serve eight months of home detention and a $5,500 fine to be paid over 24 months of supervised release.
The Palm Beach County Human Trafficking Task Force, which includes the FBI, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, investigated the case. The Task Force received assistance from the Department of Labor Office of the Inspector General, the Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division, the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, Colorado Legal Services Migrant Farm Worker Division, Legal Aid Services of Oregon Farmworker Program and Indiana Legal Services Worker Rights and Protection Project.
The Government of Mexico, including the Fiscalía General de la República (FGR), provided significant assistance in the extradition of Villatoro Moreno to the United States. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs worked with law enforcement partners in Mexico to secure the arrest and extradition of Villatoro Moreno.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ilyssa Spergel for the Middle District of Florida and Trial Attorney Matthew Thiman of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section are prosecuting the case. Former Trial Attorney and current Assistant U.S. Attorney Maryan Zhuravitsky for the District of Maryland also prosecuted the case.
Anyone who has information about human trafficking should report that information to the National Human Trafficking Hotline toll-free at 1-888-373-7888, which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For more information about human trafficking, please visit www.humantraffickinghotline.org. Information on the Justice Department’s efforts to combat human trafficking can be found at www.justice.gov/humantrafficking.
Mexican National Pleads Guilty to Racketeering Conspiracy Involving the Forced Labor of Mexican WorkersRead the Press Release
Alexander Villatoro Moreno, age 53, also known as Quichi, pleaded guilty in federal court in Tampa, Florida, to conspiracy under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. A federal grand jury in the Middle District of Florida had previously returned a six-count indictment against multiple defendants for their roles in the conspiracy, which victimized Mexican H-2A workers who, between 2015 and 2017, had worked in the United States harvesting fruits, vegetables and other agricultural products.
According to court documents, Villatoro Moreno and his co-defendants operated and managed Los Villatoros Harvesting (LVH), a farm labor contracting company, that functioned as a criminal enterprise compelling victims to work in Florida, Kentucky, Indiana, Georgia and North Carolina. Villatoro Moreno and his co-defendants fraudulently recruited Mexican nationals to come into the United States on short-term, H-2A, agricultural visas and misled the United States to secure visas for the victims. Villatoro Moreno and his co-defendants charged workers exorbitant recruitment fees to work for LVH and lied to the victims about how much they would be paid, the hours they would work, the working conditions and the reimbursement they would receive for paying recruitment fees and other expenses. The workers were then compelled to provide long hours of physically demanding agricultural labor, six to seven days a week, for far less pay than they were entitled to under the law.
In addition to the work conditions, Villatoro Moreno and his co-defendants used various coercive means to compel the victims’ labor, including imposing debts on workers; confiscating the workers’ passports; subjecting workers to crowded, unsanitary and degrading living conditions; verbally abusing and humiliating the workers; threatening workers with arrest, jailtime and deportation; isolating workers by preventing them from interacting with anyone other than LVH employees; and threatening to physically harm the workers’ family members back in Mexico if the workers failed to comply with their demands.
When officials began investigating, Villatoro Moreno obstructed the federal investigation by helping to prepare false payroll information to conceal underpayments to the workers and distributing fake reimbursement receipts to the victims to make it appear that LVH was complying with the law by reimbursing the workers for their travel-related expenses.
Villatoro Moreno’s four co-defendants previously pleaded guilty in connection with their roles in the scheme. Bladimir Moreno, Alexander Villatoro Moreno’s brother, owned LVH and pleaded guilty in 2022 to conspiracy to violate the RICO Act and conspiracy to commit forced labor. Efrain Cabrera Rodas and Christina Gamez, LVH supervisors, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the RICO Act while Guadalupe Mendes Mendoza, another LVH supervisor, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to obstruct a federal investigation. In 2022, Bladimir Moreno was sentenced to 118 months in prison and ordered to pay over $175,000 in restitution to the victims while Rodas and Gamez were sentenced to 41 months and 37 months in prison, respectively. Mendoza was also sentenced in 2022 to serve eight months of home detention and a $5,500 fine to be paid over 24 months of supervised release.
The Palm Beach County Human Trafficking Task Force, which includes the FBI, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations and the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, investigated the case. The Task Force received assistance from the Department of Labor Office of the Inspector General, the Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division, the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, Colorado Legal Services Migrant Farm Worker Division, Legal Aid Services of Oregon Farmworker Program and Indiana Legal Services Worker Rights and Protection Project.
The Government of Mexico, including the Fiscalía General de la República (FGR), provided significant assistance in the extradition of Villatoro Moreno to the United States. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs worked with law enforcement partners in Mexico to secure the arrest and extradition of Villatoro Moreno.
Trial Attorney Matthew Thiman of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ilyssa Spergel for the Middle District of Florida are prosecuting the case. Former Trial Attorney and current Assistant U.S. Attorney Maryan Zhuravitsky for the District of Maryland also prosecuted the case.
Anyone who has information about human trafficking should report that information to the National Human Trafficking Hotline toll-free at 1-888-373-7888, which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For more information about human trafficking, please visit www.humantraffickinghotline.org. Information on the Justice Department’s efforts to combat human trafficking can be found at www.justice.gov/humantrafficking.
Licensed Mortgage Loan Officer Charged with Bank FraudRead the Press Release
Orlando, FL –A grand jury has returned a federal indictment charging Jason Morales (44, Chagrin Falls, Ohio) with six counts of bank fraud. If convicted, Morales faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison on each count. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to the indictment, Morales concocted and executed a mortgage fraud scheme targeting a financial institution. To ensure that otherwise unqualified borrowers were approved for mortgage loans, Morales created fictitious and fraudulent paystubs and other employment documents in the name of a construction company and consulting company that his clients never worked for. The bogus income documents falsely indicated that his clients had worked at these companies and had monthly earnings. Additionally, Morales altered legitimate bank statements provided by the borrowers and created fictitious bank statements that he submitted to the financial institution falsely representing that the borrowers had sufficient assets to qualify for the mortgage loans. Morales submitted the fictitious documents he created to the financial institutions who relied on them when making underwriting decisions.
To further deceive the financial institution, Morales created websites for the construction and consulting companies listing his email and phone number so that when the lenders called to verbally verify employment Morales impersonated company executives and falsely verified employment.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Federal Housing Finance Agency – Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development – Office of Inspector General, and Federal Bureau of Investigation. It will be prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Chris Poor.
Florida Man Arrested for Stealing More Than Half a Million Dollars of Onions and PotatoesRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Jason Canals (39, Spring Hill) has been arrested and charged with eight counts of interstate transport of stolen property. If convicted on all counts, Canals faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. The indictment also notifies Canals that the United States intends to forfeit the proceeds traceable to the offenses. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to the indictment, Canals perpetrated multiple schemes to defraud wholesale produce companies. In one scheme, Canals, without permission, used a company’s name and email signature block to send communications to victim companies requesting produce. While the shipments were enroute, Canals diverted the produce to a new location and never paid the victim companies. In a separate scheme, Canals provided victim companies false documentation making the companies believe he had prepaid for the produce, when no such payment was ever made. In total, between the cost of the produce and its transportation, Canals’s schemes resulted in a loss of over $600,000 to the victim companies.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by United States Department of Agriculture – Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Merrilyn E. Hoenemeyer.
Federal Jury Finds Sarasota Woman Guilty of Making Threats on TikTokRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida –A federal jury has found Desiree Doreen Segari (41, Sarasota) guilty of interstate communication of a threat to injure. Segari faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison. Her sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 5, 2026. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
Segari was indicted on September 18, 2025.
According to evidence presented at trial, on August 17, 2025, Segari posted a video on TikTok calling for MAGA supporters to be shot on sight. Segari stated, “so if we all get our guns and use our second amendment right…and you see somebody with a MAGA hat, ‘pew pew’ that’s what we do, that’s the way, it’s the only way.” While saying “pew pew,” Segari used hand gestures mimicking the firing of a gun. She further stated, “Put them back in their basements, make them scared again to be racist, homophobic, and terrible just awful [expletive],” and “MAGA people deserve to be terrified and scared to walk in the streets because they should know that real Americans are gonna [mouths expletive] kill them.” When Segari posted the video, she included a caption: “#seemagapewpewmaga starting a new trend, hope it catches on. Please spread the word. Share this video. Repost it. Use the hashtag all over the internet. Let's go guys. It's time to fight back in a potentially effective manner.”
The next day, Segari posted another video on TikTok, in which she stated, “See MAGA pew pew MAGA, see MAGA pew pew MAGA, see MAGA pew pew MAGA so these [expletive] know we ain’t here to play” while again using hand gestures to mimic the firing of a gun.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael Sinacore.
Tampa Man Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison for Distributing Fentanyl That Resulted in an Overdose DeathRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Brandon Lewis Graham (44, Tampa) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington to 20 years in federal prison for distribution of a substance that contained cocaine and fentanyl that was used and resulted in death. Graham pleaded guilty on March 31, 2025. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, on March 30, 2022, a man and a woman bought a substance from Graham at a location in Riverview. They went to the woman’s home and used the substance, which they believed to be cocaine. The next morning, the man found the woman in her bed. She was unresponsive and appeared to be deceased. Deputies from the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) responded to a 911 call and found the deceased victim. Investigators also found a clear plastic baggie under the victim’s bra. The baggie contained a substance that tested positive for cocaine and fentanyl. The Hillsborough County Medical Examiner’s Department conducted an autopsy and determined that the cause of the victim’s death was intoxication by the combined effects of fentanyl, cocaine, and ethanol.
Based on witness interviews, surveillance videos, and evidence from the victim’s cellphone, HCSO detectives determined that Graham, known to the victim as “Homie Boog,” sold the cocaine and fentanyl mixture to the victim. When Graham was arrested on August 3, 2022, he was found in possession of two plastic bags that contained fentanyl and three bags that contained methamphetamine. Graham admitted to selling narcotics to the victim at a gas station in Riverview and told detectives that he had narcotics in his apartment. A search of Graham’s apartment resulted in the recovery of two plastic bags containing fentanyl and cocaine.
This case was investigated by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, the Hillsborough County Medical Examiner Department, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Maria Guzman and Michael Sinacore.
Tampa Man Indicted for Attempted Production, Receipt, and Transfer of Obscene Material to A MinorRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Tavaris Marvidis Johnson (43, Tampa) has been charged by indictment with attempted production and receipt of child sex abuse material and transfer of obscene material to a minor. If convicted on all counts, Johnson faces a maximum penalty of 60 years in federal prison. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to the indictment, between August 2 and August 9, 2025, Johnson attempted to use, persuade, and induce a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of such conduct. During the same time period, Johnson knowingly attempted to receive a visual depiction involving the sexual abuse of a minor. Between August 8 and August 9, 2025, Johnson knowingly transferred obscene material to an individual who he knew was under the age of 16 years.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the FBI and the Tampa Police Department. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Courtney Derry.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Mexican National Sentenced to More Than Three Years in Federal Prison for Illegal ReentryRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Carmelo Nolasco-Carbajal (42, Mexico) was sentenced today by Senior U.S. District Judge Richard A. Lazzara to three years and one month in federal prison for illegal reentry by an aggravated felon. Nolasco-Carbajal pleaded guilty on December 19, 2025. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, Nolasco-Carbajal is a citizen and national of Mexico. In February 2025, Nolasco-Carbajal was found by immigration authorities after an arrest for possession of cocaine in Hillsborough County, for which he was later convicted. Prior to being found, Nolasco-Carbajal had been removed from the United States on three prior occasions and had not received permission to reenter the United States. Nolasco-Carbajal had previously been convicted of multiple felony offenses, including aggravated battery with serious bodily injury, aggravated assault, and illegal reentry.
This case was investigated by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeff Chang.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
Leader of Colombian Drug Trafficking Organization Sentenced to More Than 17 Years in Prison for Conspiring to Traffic Cocaine into the United StatesRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL – Rosbin Leonardo Duarte-Elvir (43, Honduras) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge William F. Jung to 17 years and 6 months in federal prison and a $5 million forfeiture for conspiring to import cocaine into the United States. Duarte-Elvir pleaded guilty on December 11, 2025. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to the plea agreement and other court documents, beginning on an unknown date and continuing through 2024, Duarte-Elvir routinely owned and invested in cocaine shipments that were bound for the United States. With the help of a security supervisor and other corrupt airport employees, conspirators loaded commercial aircraft with cocaine disguised in boxes of fruit at Alfonso Bonilla Aragón International Airport in Cali, Colombia and intended for Gustavo Rojas Pinilla International Airport in San Andrés Island, Colombia. With the assistance of no fewer than 20 corrupt Colombian police officers, the conspirators exported the cocaine out of the San Andrés Island airport, then smuggled the narcotics by boat to either Nicaragua or Honduras, then to Mexico and the United States via land routes.
Historically, Duarte-Elvir and his co-conspirators owned and successfully trafficked thousands of kilograms of cocaine from Colombia to the United States. Their last drug trafficking endeavor was in May 2024. After the conspirators’ drug trafficking route was temporarily disrupted due to a seizure at the San Andrés Island airport in 2023, Duarte-Elvir and other leaders in his transnational criminal organization (TCO) decided it was time to re-open their illicit air route. On May 7, 2024, Duarte-Elvir’s couriers tried importing 540 kilograms of cocaine into the Cali airport, but Colombian law enforcement officers seized the load of cocaine. Had the importation been successful, this load of cocaine would eventually be bound for the United States.
(Photo of drug seizure)
Throughout his years owning and trafficking cocaine in Colombia, Duarte-Elvir and his TCO earned substantial profits. Duarte-Elvir used the proceeds of drug trafficking to furnish a lavish lifestyle, to include a large estate outside of Cali, Colombia.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, and the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service. Valuable assistance was provided by the Colombian National Police’s Dirreccion de Antinarcotics (DIRAN) and the Colombian Equipo de Trabajo Investigativo Control Aeronaves (ETICA). The Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs and Judicial Attaché Office in Bogotá worked with Colombian authorities to secure the arrest and March 2025 extradition from Colombia of Duarte-Elvir. This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David J. Pardo. Assistant United States Attorney Suzanne C. Nebesky is handling the forfeiture.
This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. HSTF Region 20 (Tampa) comprises agents and officers from multiple law enforcement agencies with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime.
Sarasota Lab Agrees to Pay $980,000 to Resolve False Claims Act ViolationsRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida– Allin IP DX LLC, a laboratory located in Sarasota, Florida, has agreed to pay $980,000 to resolve allegations that the company violated the Anti-Kickback Statute and False Claims Act by unlawfully paying a marketing service for referrals of Medicare beneficiaries. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
The United States contends that, between January 2 and June 15, 2023, Allin paid remuneration to independent marketers in exchange for the referral of lab specimens to Allin in violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute resulting in the submission of false claims to the Medicare program in violation of the False Claims Act. Allin voluntarily self-disclosed this conduct to the United States and cooperated with the government’s investigation by providing the United States with a detailed disclosure statement and other supplemental information to assist the United States in its investigation.
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 healthcare programs. It seeks to ensure that medical providers’ judgments are not compromised by improper financial incentives and are instead based on the best interests of their patients.
“This settlement is a reflection of our commitment to protect our healthcare programs and deter those who violate federal laws at the expense of our taxpayers,” said U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe. “Laboratory testing is important to our beneficiaries, and we will hold providers accountable to safeguard our programs and ensure the provision of appropriate lab services to patients.”
“Medicare beneficiaries rely on the integrity of the Medicare program,” said Special Agent in Charge Isaac M. Bledsoe of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG). “Today’s resolution demonstrates our continued commitment to holding providers accountable and ensuring that medical decisions are driven by patient needs, not illegal incentives.”
This matter was investigated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General. It was handled by Assistant United States Attorney Sean Keefe.
The claims resolved by this settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.
Daytona Beach Man Sentenced to over Four Years for Conspiracy and Aggravated Identity TheftRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – Craig Stevens (34, Daytona Beach) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Roy B. Dalton, Jr. to four years and six months in federal prison for conspiracy and aggravated identity theft. As part of his sentence, the court also entered an order of forfeiture in the amount of $19,762.38, the proceeds Stevens obtained from the scheme. Stevens pleaded guilty on October 23, 2025. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, Stevens was employed as a personal care assistant for an elderly victim at an assisted living facility in Palm Coast. Stevens obtained and shared the victim’s personal identifiable information with his co-defendants, Jataiya Johnson and Aaron Harden. Between December 2019 and February 2020, the group used the victim’s personal information to access the victim’s bank accounts and apply for credit cards and loans under the victim’s name. They then used the bank accounts and credit cards to make fraudulent personal purchases and transactions.
Jataiya Johnson and Aaron Harden have pleaded guilty to their roles in this case. They are awaiting sentencing.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Diane S. Hu. The forfeiture is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Nicole M. Andrejko.
Marion County Man Sentenced to 10 Years in Federal Prison for Attempted Enticement of a MinorRead the Press Release
Ocala, Florida – Clayton Lee Harris (22, Ocklawaha) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Thomas P. Barber to 10 years in federal prison for attempted enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity. He pleaded guilty on November 13, 2025. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court records, on July 26, 2025, an undercover officer portrayed a 14-year-old female on an online dating website. Harris contacted the undercover officer and, after learning the minor’s age, asked to meet for a sexual encounter. When Harris arrived at the meeting location, he was apprehended by law enforcement.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Marion County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Hannah Nowalk Watson.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Lake County Felon Sentenced to Nearly Four Years in Federal Prison for Illegally Possessing a FirearmRead the Press Release
Ocala, Florida – Kevin Eugene Leeks, Jr. (34, Leesburg) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Thomas P. Barber to 3 years and 10 months in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. He pleaded guilty on October 31, 2025. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court records, Leeks has been a convicted felon since 2013. His prior felony convictions include robbery with a deadly weapon. On July 13, 2019, a deputy from the Lake County Sheriff’s Office conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle operated by Leeks. During the stop, Leeks instructed a passenger to throw Leeks’s loaded pistol out of the car window. The deputy recovered the firearm and arrested Leeks. As a convicted felon, Leeks is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition under federal law.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Lake County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Hannah Nowalk Watson.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
Lake County Convicted Felon Sentenced to Five Years in Federal Prison for Illegally Possessing a FirearmRead the Press Release
Ocala, Florida – Gregory Coleman III (29, Leesburg) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Thomas P. Barber to five years in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. He pleaded guilty on July 21, 2025. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court records, Coleman has been convicted of four state felonies—aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, resisting a law enforcement officer with violence, fleeing or attempting to elude law enforcement, and possession of cocaine. Following these convictions, on November 4, 2023, Coleman sold a firearm to a confidential source who was working in cooperation with federal agents. Coleman told the source he had more firearms but wanted to keep them for himself. As a convicted felon, Coleman is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition under federal law.
This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Eustis Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Hannah Nowalk Watson.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
Georgia Man Sentenced to More Than Two Years in Prison for Bail Bondsman SchemeRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida– Kimani Brennen Fletcher (26, Covington, GA) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge John L. Badalamenti to 27 months in federal prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud. The court also ordered Fletcher to pay $40,800 in restitution and in forfeiture. Fletcher pleaded guilty in December 2025. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, between April 15 and April 22, 2024, co-conspirators of Fletcher placed telephone calls to victims in which they falsely and fraudulently identified themselves as members of the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. The victims were told they had outstanding warrants and needed to pay money to avoid arrest. Fletcher posed as a bail bondsman and picked up money from victims in the Middle District of Florida. Once Fletcher received the fraud proceeds, he provided the funds to his co-conspirators. In total, Fletcher obtained approximately $40,800 in fraud proceeds.
This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ilyssa M. Spergel.
Notary Pleads Guilty to Filing False Document in Orlando Immigration CourtRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Carlos Enrique Diaz Roque (29, Brooksville) has pleaded guilty to obstruction of official proceeding. Diaz Roque faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to the plea agreement, Diaz Roque, a licensed notary, agreed to prepare an immigration document for Client-1. Diaz Roque, however, has never been a licensed attorney.
On February 3, 2025, Diaz Roque filed a motion to administratively close Client-1’s pending Orlando Immigration Court case. That same day, Diaz Roque also filed a document that was supposedly the Department of Homeland Security’s brief opposing Client-1’s motion. That brief said that the Department of Homeland Security “requests that the Court don’t deny the respondent’s motion to administratively close proceedings in the above-captioned case.” Diaz Roque signed the document in the name of the attorney for the Department of Homeland Security. In fact, as Diaz Roque well knew, the Department of Homeland Security’s attorney did not prepare, sign, file or authorize filing the brief with the Orlando Immigration Court in Client-1’s case.
On June 30, 2025, Client-1 testified under oath in Orlando Immigration Court that he hired Diaz-Roque to prepare the motion for administrative closure. Client-1 denied ever seeing the opposition to it. On November 18, 2025, Diaz Roque admitted to two Homeland Security Investigations agents that he falsely signed the Department of Homeland Security’s brief and filed it.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam W. McCall.
Jacksonville Marketing Company Owner Pleads Guilty to Conspiring to Defraud Medicare and Medicaid in the Provision of HIV Prophylactic MedicationsRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – Jonathan Simeon Gholston (35, Jacksonville) has pleaded guilty to conspiring to receive kickbacks in return for the referral of Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries for the provision of HIV prophylactic medications. He faces a maximum penalty of 5 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to the plea agreement, Gholston owned and operated a marketing company that entered into an agreement with a Jacksonville pharmacy to market HIV post-exposure prophylactic medications that would be provided by the pharmacy. HIV post-exposure prophylactic medications are medicines that must be taken very soon after a possible exposure to HIV to prevent the virus from taking hold in the body.
The marketing company’s representatives set up tents and tables in Jacksonville, generally in low-income areas and usually near store fronts, and offered to provide free, government-sponsored cellphones to anyone who stopped and agreed to provide their personal information to obtain the phones. As a result of the marketing company’s agreement with the pharmacy, while obtaining the personal information necessary for the person to receive the free cellphone, the marketers also obtained health insurance information, including whether the person was covered by Medicare or Medicaid. The persons who were signed up by the marketers believed that they were agreeing only to receive a free cellphone and did not request or agree to receive HIV medications.
The agreement between the marketing company and the pharmacy provided that pharmacy would pay the marketing company $200 for every person who was referred for the provision of HIV medications but that the pharmacy would pay this amount only if a claim submitted on behalf of the person was paid by Medicare or Medicaid. The marketing company in turn paid its marketers a set amount, usually $50, for every person they referred, but it paid this amount only if the claim for that person was paid by Medicare or Medicaid. Payments to marketers of a set amount based on whether a claim is paid are illegal kickbacks under federal law.
The information gathered by the marketers was sent to the pharmacy, which used the information to generate prescriptions for HIV prophylactic medications that were authorized by a nurse practitioner. The nurse practitioner had never seen, spoken with, or performed any manner of evaluation, examination, or test on the persons for whom the prescriptions were issued. The pharmacy filled the prescriptions, submitted claims to Medicare or Medicaid for the medications, and was reimbursed approximately $4,000 per month for each person for whom a claim was paid.
During the investigation, law enforcement agents interviewed numerous individuals who had received HIV medications without their request or consent. For some of these, taking the medications could have seriously endangered their health, given pre-existing medical conditions from which they suffered.
The actions of Gholston and his co‑conspirators caused the submission of approximately 20,316 fraudulent claims to Medicare and Medicaid, resulting in reimbursements from Medicare totaling approximately $11,681,479 and reimbursements from Medicaid totaling approximately $12,536,267. Accordingly, the total loss to these programs was approximately $24,217,746. From this amount, Gholston received a total of approximately $2,273,000, which he has agreed to forfeit to the government.
This case was investigated by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Arnold B. Corsmeier. The forfeiture is being handled by Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer Harrington.
Deltona Man Convicted of Coercing and Enticing Minor to Engage in Sexual ActivityRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – A federal jury has found James Bernard Grover (Deltona, 63) guilty of coercing and enticing a minor to engage in sexual activity. Grover faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 28, 2026. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, Grover was the founder and executive director of the Special Needs Advocacy Program, or “SNAP,” a nonprofit organization based in Sanford, Florida. Through SNAP, Grover met an autistic minor and coerced and enticed the minor victim to engage in sexual activity.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office, the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office, and the Sanford Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Diane S. Hu and Robert D. Sowell.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Tampa Auto Dealer Sentenced to 54 Months’ Imprisonment for Wire Fraud Conspiracy and Exporting Stolen VehicleRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Mohamad Jihad Fakih (Tampa, 27) has been sentenced by U.S. Senior District Judge Virginia M. Hernandez Covington to four and a half years in federal prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud and attempting to export a stolen motor vehicle. As part of his sentence, the court also entered an order of forfeiture in the amount of $378,886.96, the proceeds of the conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Fakih was found guilty on August 21, 2025. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, Fakih conspired with others to commit wire fraud by obtaining fraudulent loans from automotive financing companies. Because of Fakih’s role as a car dealer and wholesaler, he had access to a dealership website through which automobile financing applications could be submitted. To facilitate the scheme, Fakih and his coconspirator would identify straw purchasers and submit falsified loan applications to the victim companies on their behalf, misrepresenting that a vehicle was being purchased by the straw purchaser. In reality, there was no vehicle for sale.
After the financing loans were approved, the loan amounts would be disbursed to Fakih as the seller of the vehicle, and his coconspirator and straw purchasers would receive a cut from the proceeds. It was also part of Fakih’s scheme to file false insurance claims for the vehicles, reporting them as stolen. In other instances, Fakih attempted to export vehicles for which he had fraudulently obtained financing and for which the financing company held a lien. In total, Fakih repeated this scheme for at least six vehicles in the amount of at least $372,000.
Additionally, Fakih engaged in more straightforward theft, attempting to export stolen cars overseas. Fakih, using one of the straw purchasers, procured a stolen Rolls-Royce Cullinan SUV. He arranged for the Cullinan to be shipped in a container out of the Port of Savannah, the manifest for which had been falsified so as not to alert law enforcement as to its true contents. U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized the container and assessed that the stolen Cullinan’s MSRP was approximately $460,000.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Joint Terrorism Task Force. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Risha Asokan.
Software Distributor Sentenced to 22 Months in Prison for Conspiracy to Traffic in Illicit Microsoft Certificates of AuthenticityRead the Press Release
Tampa, FL – Heidi Richards (52, Brandon) has been sentenced to 22 months in federal prison after a jury found her guilty of conspiring to traffic in illicit Microsoft certificate of authenticity (COA) labels. The Court also ordered Richards to pay a $50,000 fine. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Richards, doing business as Trinity Software Distribution, paid co-conspirators millions of dollars for thousands of genuine, standalone Microsoft COA labels at prices significantly lower than the retail price of the associated software. Richards and her employees harvested product key codes from the labels, then sold them in bulk to her customers. Federal law prohibits the trafficking of standalone COA labels separate from the software programs they were intended to accompany.
COA labels authenticate Microsoft software, assist customers in identifying genuine software, and bear security features intended to dissuade counterfeit duplication. There is an illicit, secondary market for COA labels because they bear product key codes used to activate Microsoft software. COA labels are not to be sold separately from the license and hardware that they are intended to accompany, and they hold no independent commercial value.
Homeland Security Investigations (Kansas City Field Office) investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Risha Asokan of the Middle District of Florida and Trial Attorney Jared Hosid of the Justice Department’s Computer Crime & Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS) prosecuted the case.
CCIPS investigates and prosecutes cybercrime in coordination with domestic and international law enforcement agencies, often with assistance from the private sector. Since 2020, CCIPS has secured the conviction of over 180 cybercriminals, and court orders for the return of over $350 million in victim funds.
Texas Woman Sentenced to Five Years in Federal Prison for Theft of Government Money and Aggravated Identity TheftRead the Press Release
Fort Myers, Florida – Kristin Cara Kunstler (43, Amarillo, TX) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kyle C. Dudek to five years and one month in federal prison for theft of government money and aggravated identity theft. Kunstler pleaded guilty on October 23, 2025. As part of her sentence, the court also entered an order of forfeiture in the amount of $2,797,083, the proceeds of the theft of government money. United States Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, on January 2, 2025, Kunstler knowingly stole money belonging to the United States Treasury by depositing a U.S. Treasury check belonging to the victim. Kunstler identified herself using the victim’s name and opened a bank account in the name of the victim at a bank branch located in Naples, FL. Kunstler used the victim’s name, date of birth, and driver license number to open the account without the victim’s knowledge or consent, then deposited a U.S. Treasury check in the amount of $2,797,083 made payable to the victim. Kunstler was the sole signer on the bank account.
By February 19, 2025, Kunstler had withdrawn at least $1.5 million from the bank account. She used the money for her own use and the use of another.
This case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA). It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Yolande G. Viacava. Assistant United States Attorney James A. Muench is handling the forfeiture.
Previously Convicted Felon from Fort Myers Pleads Guilty to Federal Gun ChargeRead the Press Release
Fort Myers, Florida – Jose Manuel Caraballo-Torres (39, Fort Myers) has pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon. He faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison. The sentencing is set for May 22, 2026. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, on September 27, 2025, Caraballo-Torres was a passenger in a vehicle stopped for speeding by the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office. Based on an odor of marijuana emitting from the vehicle and the lack of a medical marijuana card, the deputy removed the passengers, one by one, and conducted a pat down for the deputy’s safety. During the pat down of Caraballo-Torres, the deputy located a loaded Ruger LCP .380 caliber pistol on Caraballo-Torres’s person. This firearm had been reported stolen out of Orlando. As a previously convicted felon, Caraballo-Torres is prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition under federal law.
This case was investigated by the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Patrick L. Darcey.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
North Fort Myers Felon Pleads Guilty to Possessing Arsenal of FirearmsRead the Press Release
Fort Myers, Florida – Frederick Charles Kutchinsky (54, North Fort Myers) has pleaded guilty to possessing multiple firearms and ammunition as a convicted felon. He faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison. The sentencing is set for May 29, 2026. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, on January 24, 2025, deputies with the Lee County Sheriff’s Office Fugitive Warrants Unit (FWU) responded to Kutchinsky’s home in North Fort Myers to serve an active felony arrest warrant from Georgia. While in the process of getting Kutchinsky to come outside, FWU deputies observed multiple firearms in plain view through the residence windows, one of which was a .50 caliber rifle. Kutchinsky exited the home and was taken into custody.
FWU deputies obtained and executed a search warrant and located more than 50 firearms and hundreds of rounds of ammunition inside the residence as well as a work bench with firearms parts and tools for modifying firearms.
As a previously convicted felon, Kutchinsky is prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition under federal law.
This case was investigated by the Lee County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Patrick L. Darcey.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhood (PSN).
Massachusetts Man Indicted and Arrested for Fraudulently Using Government SealsRead the Press Release
Ocala, FL – Mario Cesar Dos Santos, Jr. (50, Massachusetts) has been charged by indictment and arrested for the fraudulent use of government seals. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 5 years in federal prison. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, Dos Santos is the president of an organization called Chaplain Emergency Management Agency Inc. (CEMA), which he falsely claimed was a government agency endorsed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). In doing so, Dos Santos fraudulently used the seals of FEMA, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Neither Dos Santos nor CEMA have authorization to use the seals of DHS, FEMA, or FBI, nor are they otherwise affiliated with DHS, FEMA, FBI, or any other department or agency of the federal government.
As outlined in the court documents, Dos Santos has organized multiple CEMA chaplaincy training courses throughout the country. At these trainings, Dos Santos provided participants with identification cards, law enforcement badges, and course completion certificates containing the seals of various departments and agencies of the United States. As shown in the redacted images below, the identification cards contain one of CEMA’s logos, which consists of the DHS seal, modified to state, “U.S. Department of Homeland Chaplain.” The back of the identification cards contain the DHS/FEMA seal with no alterations. The certificates contain the FBI seal and a slightly different version of the CEMA logo—an older version of the FEMA seal, modified to state, “U.S. Department of Homeland Chaplain.”
Dos Santos also offered various CEMA merchandise for sale, including polo shirts, bumper stickers, jackets, badges, and badge holders—all bearing either the DHS or FEMA seal. During an undercover operation conducted at a training held on September 27, 2025, a confidential informant purchased merchandise items, pictured below:
CEMA’s website and social media accounts all display the CEMA logo (an altered version of the DHS seal) and falsely identify CEMA as a government organization or federal agency.
Dos Santos is a Brazilian national who came to the United States in 2016. He has overstayed his visa and is undergoing deportation proceedings. In connection with his immigration case, Dos Santos submitted multiple fraudulent documents, including a “Certificate of Ordination” and a diploma from the “University of Berkley” in Michigan, which does not exist.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with material support from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service’s Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate, and the Federal Air Marshal Service. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Belkis H. Callaos.
Indictment Criminal ComplaintJacksonville Man Pleads Guilty to Attempting to Entice a 13-Year-Old Child to Engage in Sexual ActivityRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – Jerry Alexander Cobb (38, Jacksonville) has pleaded guilty to using his cellphone and the internet to attempt to entice a 13-year-old child to engage in sexual activity. Cobb faces a minimum penalty of 10 years, up to life, in federal prison and a potential lifetime term of supervised release. His sentencing hearing has been set for May 27, 2026. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, between July 18 and August 1, 2025, an FBI agent (UC) in Jacksonville was conducting an undercover operation on an online social media application (app) to identify adults who were seeking to make contact with and engage in sexual activity with children. During this operation, UC and app user “Jerry,” later identified as Cobb, exchanged several private online text messages on the app. After UC advised “Jerry” that “she” was only 13 years old, “Jerry” texted, “[w]e can be friends” and repeatedly asked for the location of the “child’s” residence, whether the “child” could “sneak out at night,” and if “she” was a “virgin.”
On July 30, 2025, “Jerry” texted the “child” that they should meet and texted, “[y]ou want to just get a hotel room?” “Jerry” suggested that they engage in sexual activity in the hotel room and promised that he would bring and use a condom. On July 31, 2025, Cobb texted the “child,” “[y]es I’m serious that we can [have] sex.” The next day, Cobb and the “child” made plans to meet for sexual activity later that day in Jacksonville.
That evening, Cobb traveled to the location where he intended to meet the purported 13-year-old “child” for sex. Upon arrival, Cobb was arrested by FBI agents.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office, and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.
This is another case brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in 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, rescue, and seek justice for child victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Honduran National Sentenced to 24 Months in Federal Prison for Aggravated Identity TheftRead the Press Release
Fort Myers, Florida – Elvis Reniery Callejas Flores (43, Honduras) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kyle C. Dudek to two years in federal prison for aggravated identity theft. Callejas Flores pleaded guilty on September 4, 2025. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) was contacted by the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) about Callejas Flores, a Honduran national living in Florida. INTERPOL provided a copy of latent fingerprints from Callejas Flores and information that he was using the assumed identities of two different United States citizens.
On February 24, 2025, HSI agents encountered Callejas Flores at a construction site in Cape Coral. Callejas Flores provided agents with a Florida driver license as identification using the name of a victim. Further, Callejas Flores falsely claimed that he had been born in New York.
On April 10, 2025, HSI agents executed a search warrant at Callejas Flores’s home. During the search, agents located items that identified the true name of Callejas Flores. They also located the New York birth certificate in the name of the victim that Callejas Flores had used without lawful authority. A latent fingerprint comparison of the prints provided by INTERPOL and fingerprints taken by law enforcement on two prior encounters with Callejas Flores, when he used two different names, confirmed that the fingerprints belonged to the same individual.
“Safeguarding personal information in today’s modern world is becoming increasingly difficult, yet paramount to prevent fraud and the victimization of unwitting citizens,” said U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe. “The cooperation and diligent investigation by INTERPOL and Homeland Security Investigations in this case proved successful in revealing the true identity of a bad actor and bringing him to justice.”
“Identity theft is a serious crime that undermines the integrity of our nation’s identification systems and victimizes innocent citizens,” said Homeland Security Investigations Ft. Myers Resident Agent in Charge John Yancey. “HSI, alongside our partners, remains committed to protecting the public by investigating and prosecuting those who use stolen identities to conceal their true identity and evade the law. This conviction demonstrates our dedication to holding offenders accountable and safeguarding the security of our communities.”
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Yolande G. Viacava.
Convicted Sexual Predator Charged with Illegal Reentry into the United States After Prior DeportationRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – Miguel Solis-Morales (42, Mexico) has been charged by indictment with illegal reentry into the United States by a previously deported alien. If convicted, Solis-Morales faces up to 20 years in federal prison and subsequent deportation and removal from the United States. Solis-Morales made his initial appearance in federal court in Jacksonville on February 26, 2026, and ordered detained pending a detention hearing on March 4 ,2026. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, Solis-Morales was convicted of sexual battery on September 10, 2009, in Jacksonville. He was then ordered to be designated as a sexual predator under Florida law. On May 21, 2025, he was removed from the United States by immigration authorities. On February 16, 2026, Solis-Morales was found to be voluntarily back in the United States and was arrested. Records checks confirmed that he had not applied to U.S. immigration authorities for permission to lawfully reenter the United States after his removal.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the Florida Highway Patrol. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the United States Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect communities from the perpetrators of violent crime and human trafficking.
Convicted Felon Sentenced to 10 Years for the Interstate Transportation of Stolen Avionics EquipmentRead the Press Release
Tampa. Florida – Mario Mercier Hernandez (61, New Port Richey) has been sentenced by United States District Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle to the statutory maximum of 10 years in federal prison for the interstate transportation of stolen property. Mercier pleaded guilty on July 25, 2025. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, beginning around 2019, Mercier embarked on a string of thefts of avionics equipment from more than forty airports across the United States, including airports in Florida, Tennessee, New Jersey, Maryland, and South Carolina. Mercier, using his knowledge and skill as an FAA-certified pilot, entered each airport, broke into airplanes, and stole valuable electronics equipment from the planes. In total, Mercier stole more than $1.1 million worth of avionics electronics from his victims. Mercier’s thefts continued until May 23, 2024, when he was arrested while stealing equipment from aircraft at the Caldwell Executive Airport in Caldwell, Idaho.
Mercier owned and operated JWG International and JWG Aviation in the Middle District of Florida. These companies purported to provide aid to impoverished children in Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Ukraine. Mercier used these companies to sell the stolen avionics equipment on various websites to unsuspecting purchasers around the United States.
Previously, in 1993, Mercier was convicted in the Eastern District of Texas for a series of avionics burglaries across Texas, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and Vermont. In 2007, Mercier was also convicted of transportation of stolen property in the Middle District of Florida, relating to a similar scheme to steal and resell avionics equipment.
“This investigation spanned multiple states and involved numerous agencies,” said U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe. “Clearly, it demonstrates the ability and resolve of our law enforcement partners to extend their reach and bring criminals to justice.”
“Today’s sentencing sends a clear and unequivocal message that those who engage in extensive, far-reaching schemes to steal, transport, and resell avionics equipment will face serious consequences,” said Greg Thompson, Special Agent-in-Charge, Department of Transportation Office of Inspector General, Mid-Atlantic Region. “Together with our law enforcement and prosecutorial partners, we will relentlessly pursue those who seek to exploit our transportation systems and ensure they are brought to justice.”
This case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation, with valuable assistance from the U.S. Department of Transportation - Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry & Security (BIS), St. Mary's Sheriff's Office (Lexington Park, Maryland), Canyon County Sheriff's Office and Caldwell Police Department (Caldwell, Idaho), Wilkes County Sheriff's Office (Wilkesboro, North Carolina), McClain County Sheriff's Office (Purcell, Oklahoma), Concord Police Department (Concord, North Carolina), Baxter County Sheriff’s Office (Mountain Home, Arkansas), Moore County Sheriff's Office (Carthage, North Carolina), Hillsborough Township Police Department (Hillsborough, New Jersey), Charleston County Aviation Authority Police Department (Mount Pleasant, South Carolina), Statesville Police Department (Statesville, North Carolina), Dorchester County Sheriff's Office (Summerville, South Carolina), Asheboro Police Department (Asheboro, North Carolina), Oconee County Sheriff's Office (Walhalla, South Carolina), Nashau Police Department (Nashau, New Hampshire), Citrus County Sherriff's Office (Inverness, Florida), Greenwood County Sheriff's Office (Greenwood, South Carolina), Lane County Sheriff's Office (Eugene, Oregon), Ontario County Sheriff's Office (Canandaigua, New York), Stow Police Department (Stow, Massachusetts), Burke County Sheriff's Office (Morganton, North Carolina), Iredell County Sheriff's Office (Mooresville, North Carolina), Charles County Sheriff's Office (Waldorf, Maryland), Thomasville Police Department (Thomasville, Georgia), Clarksville Police Department (Clarksville, Tennessee), Macon County Sheriff's Office (Franklin, North Carolina), Lincoln County Sheriff's Office (Lincolnton, North Carolina), McMinn County Sheriff's Office (Athens, Tennessee), Robertson County Sheriff's Office (Springfield, Tennessee), Lumberton Police Department (Lumberton, New Jersey), Bedminster Police Department (Bedminster, New Jersey), Spanish Fork Police Department (Spanish Fork, Utah), and Vancouver Police Department (Vancouver, Washington). It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lindsey Schmidt.
California Man Sentenced to over 24 Years for Transporting 132 Pounds of Methamphetamine to Tampa International AirportRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Jacob Paul Arjona (32, Bakersfield, CA) has been sentenced to 24 years and 6 months in federal prison for conspiring to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine. This sentence is to be served concurrently with Arjona’s sentence in a separate federal methamphetamine trafficking and kidnapping case, in which he was sentenced in August 2025 to 17 years and 7 months’ imprisonment. Arjona has been in custody since February 25, 2025, he pleaded guilty on November 19, 2025. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to court documents, Arjona recruited Hernan Cruz-Moreno and Agustin Ortiz-Sanchez to transport more than 120 pounds of methamphetamine to Tampa in their luggage on a flight from Los Angeles, California to Tampa International Airport (TIA) on May 3, 2023, while Arjona traveled to Florida separately to oversee the distribution of the methamphetamine.
After Cruz-Moreno and Ortiz-Sanchez were stopped and arrested at TIA and their luggage was seized, special agents from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) had packaging from the seized methamphetamine tested and received a positive match on fingerprint testing for Arjona. Airline records showed that Arjona had traveled to Tampa later and flew out of Orlando on May 3, 2023.
Cruz-Moreno previously pleaded guilty to trafficking charges and was sentenced in April 2024 to 7 years and 3 months’ imprisonment. Ortiz-Sanchez fled after he was released on bond and remains a fugitive from justice.
Airline records also connected Arjona to similar ventures in other jurisdictions involving marijuana and methamphetamine. In addition, airline and baggage records the HSI agents had gathered while investigating this case helped the Drug Enforcement Administration connect Arjona to an unrelated October 2023 drug and kidnapping case in Holiday, Florida. Arjona pleaded guilty in that case in December 2024.
“The coordination and cooperation by our law enforcement partners were effective in disrupting the trafficking of methamphetamine from coast to coast,” said U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe. “We will continue to work together to prevent the flow of dangerous drugs into our communities across the Middle District of Florida.”
“Illicit narcotics like methamphetamine pose a grave threat that destroys lives, tears apart families, and undermines the safety and well-being of neighborhoods across the country,” said Homeland Security Investigations Tampa acting Assistant Special Agent in Charge Michael Calvo. HSI, alongside our partners at Tampa International Airport Police Department, are dedicated to stopping these criminals from importing the devastating effects of illegal drugs into our communities.”
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations with assistance from the Tampa International Airport Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney E. Jackson Boggs, Jr.
Palmetto Man Charged with Illegal Disposal of a Deceased BodyRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Matthew Edward Zoladz (36, Palmetto) has been charged by federal indictment with a violation of the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act and a violation of the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships. If convicted on all counts, Zoladz faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to the indictment, on December 8, 2022, Zoladz illegally dumped the body of Victim 1 into ocean waters.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Abigail K. King.
IndictmentJacksonville Man Pleads Guilty to Robbing Pizza Restaurant and Discharging a FirearmRead the Press Release
Jacksonville, FL – Eugene Campbell IV (35, Jacksonville) has pleaded guilty to Hobbs Act robbery and discharging a firearm in furtherance of a crime of violence in connection with two Jacksonville restaurant robberies. Campbell faces a minimum penalty of 20 years, up to two life terms plus 20 years, in federal prison. His sentencing date has not yet been set. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to the plea agreement, on August 4, 2025, Campbell entered a pizza restaurant in Jacksonville, discharged a sawed-off rifle into the ceiling, and demanded money from the employees at gunpoint. He escaped with approximately $500. The next day, Campbell entered another pizza restaurant in Jacksonville, discharged his firearm into the wall, demanded money from the employees at gunpoint, and escaped with approximately $700. Law enforcement conducted ballistics analyses of the shell casings recovered at both scenes, which showed that the rounds had been fired from the same gun that had also been used during another incident in St. Johns County.
Investigators connected the robberies to Campbell by interviewing Campbell’s associates and reviewing surveillance footage obtained from the victims and neighboring businesses. Officers from Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office arrested Campbell on August 6, 2025, he subsequently admitted to the robberies.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, and the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David B. Mesrobian.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).
Pasco County School Employee Charged with Possession of Child Sex Abuse MaterialRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Joel Thomas Lust (51, New Port Richey) has been charged by federal indictment with possessing child sex abuse material. If convicted, Lust faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to the indictment, between March 2023 and May 2024, Lust possessed and accessed with intent to view a matter which contained a visual depiction involving the sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Courtney Derry.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
IndictmentGoliath Ventures CEO Arrested for Wire Fraud and Money LaunderingRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida – Christopher Alexander Delgado (34, Apopka) has been arrested on a criminal complaint charging him with wire fraud and money laundering. If convicted on all counts, Delgado faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to the complaint, Delgado was the President and Chief Executive Officer of Goliath Ventures, formerly known as Gen-Z Venture Firm. From January 2023 through January 2026, Delgado operated Goliath as a “Ponzi scheme,” which is a form of investment fraud that involves the payment of purported returns to existing investors from funds contributed by new investors. Delgado’s scheme involved soliciting victims to invest substantial sums of money under false and fraudulent promises of monthly returns generated through cryptocurrency “liquidity pools.” Victims were induced to give money to Goliath through personal referrals, professional marketing materials, luxury events, charitable sponsorships, and some monthly payments of purported returns, all of which were designed to establish Goliath’s bona fides with investors. Based on these false and fraudulent representations, Goliath obtained at least $328 million from victim investors.
Although Goliath represented that it would place the victim investors’ funds in cryptocurrency liquidity pools, in reality, the funds were primarily used to pay purported returns to earlier investors, to return principal to investors who requested it, and for Goliath’s extravagant business gatherings, holiday parties, and luxury travel accommodations. With victim investors’ funds, Delgado purchased four residential properties each worth between $1.15 million and $8.5 million.
Victims identified by law enforcement will directly receive notice of their rights pursuant to the Crime Victims’ Rights Act. If you believe you are a victim and have not otherwise received notice, please email [email protected]. You can also visit https://justice.gov/usao-mdfl/goliath_ventures for more information on how to self-identify yourself to law enforcement.
A criminal complaint is merely an allegation that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
This case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation and Homeland Security Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Richard Varadan, Noah P. Dorman, and Hannah Nowalk Watson.
Criminal ComplaintOrlando Man Convicted for Extensive Child Sextortion Scheme Involving More than 50 Child VictimsRead the Press Release
Orlando, Florida– A federal jury has found Montrey Roseberry (20, Orlando) guilty of three counts of coercion and enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity, three counts of production of child sexual abuse material, and one count of possession of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Roseberry faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 28, 2026. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, from at least July 14, 2023, through at least April 2024, Roseberry operated a scheme to extort, intimidate, and threaten children into producing CSAM. Roseberry, while impersonating a woman, coerced young victims he identified on social media into producing images and videos of themselves engaged in sexually explicit conduct. After obtaining the CSAM, Roseberry used the images and videos to extort the victims into producing increasingly perverse content involving, sadomasochism, coprophilia, bestiality, and the sexual abuse of other children.
If the child victims did not comply, Roseberry threatened to disseminate prior images and videos they had sent him that were sexual in nature to the child victims’ family members, friends, and classmates. In some cases, Roseberry threatened the child victims with death. As part of the scheme, and to further scare and extort the victims into complying with his demands, Roseberry sent the child victims photographs of their homes and names of their schools, friends, and family members. As a result of this scheme, Roseberry obtained CSAM of over 50 victims.
This case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Noah P. Dorman and Kaley Austin-Aronson.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, and to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.
Members of Jacksonville Drug Trafficking Organization Sentenced to Prison for Roles in Drive-By Shooting on I-95Read the Press Release
Jacksonville, Florida – James Toney (20, Jacksonville) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Harvey Schlesinger to 16 years in federal prison for conspiring to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute marijuana, committing a drive-by shooting in furtherance of a major drug offense, and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
Judge Schlesinger also sentenced Javon Davis (27, Jacksonville) to 7 years in federal prison and Christian Guyton (23, Jacksonville) to 8 years and 4 months in federal prison, both for conspiring to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute marijuana.
According to court documents, Toney, Davis, and Guyton served as armed distributors for a Jacksonville-based drug trafficking organization (DTO), operated and led by Nathaniel Hatcher, III. Hatcher’s DTO trafficked bulk marijuana from Northern California to Jacksonville by smuggling the drug on commercial airlines, shipping it through the mail, and transporting it by vehicle across state lines. Once the marijuana arrived in Jacksonville, Hatcher and the other DTO members transported the marijuana to various short-term rental homes throughout Jacksonville where they stored, packaged, and distributed the marijuana. Hatcher and other members of the DTO carried and possessed firearms at these residences to protect themselves, their drugs, and their drug proceeds during drug sales. In addition to trafficking, transporting, smuggling, and selling marijuana, Toney was also responsible for carrying out violence on behalf of the DTO. Hatcher had assistance from a former correctional officer, Desmond Maxwell, to unlawfully buy firearms on behalf of Hatcher and members of the DTO.
On September 18, 2023, Hatcher, Toney, and other DTO members arranged a bulk marijuana transaction with subjects whom they had met that evening in Jacksonville. The drug transaction, which occurred at a gas station along Old St. Augustine Road, failed. The other subjects never provided the promised marijuana, and instead, stole approximately $45,000 from Hatcher and Toney. After the failed drug transaction, Hatcher contacted a former police officer who illegally accessed law enforcement databases to provide Hatcher with the names and addresses of the subjects who had stolen the money. For nearly a month, Toney, Davis, Guyton, and other DTO members tracked, surveilled, and cyber-stalked the other subjects and their family members. In text messages, they plotted retaliation for the robbery, including committing acts of violence.
On October 15, 2023, Briyhon Johnson and Toney traveled to the Jacksonville International Airport to break into a rental car lot. They stole two cars with the intention of using one of the stolen cars in the planned retaliation.
Two days later, on October 17, 2023, Toney traveled to the Duval County courthouse for a scheduled court date in an unrelated pending criminal matter. Toney and other DTO members knew that one of the subjects from the September 18 failed drug transaction also had court that day for a separate criminal matter. After court concluded, Hatcher and other DTO members surveilled this subject as he exited the Duval County courthouse, accompanied by a female subject, and entered his vehicle.
Toney traveled to meet with Johnson, who provided Toney with a firearm. Johnson, Toney, Hatcher, and Tavarius Blue were operating multiple vehicles, including a stolen sedan and an SUV. They followed the subject’s vehicle from downtown Jacksonville to I-95, traveling southbound toward St. Johns County. Darion Jerido was driving a separate sedan, acting as the lookout for the others and keeping pace with the subject’s car. Johnson was driving the stolen sedan, with Toney traveling in the passenger seat. Blue was driving the SUV, with Hatcher traveling in passenger seat. At approximately 11:20 a.m., during the pursuit along I-95 South, the stolen sedan and the SUV boxed the subject’s sedan into the left lane of traffic. Toney and Hatcher discharged dozens of rounds of 7.62 caliber ammunition at the subject’s sedan. According to witness interviews, Johnson and Toney were both wearing masks. Following the shooting, the red sedan and the gray SUV fled the scene.
Officers with the St. Johns County Sheriffs’ Office and emergency medical personnel arrived on scene. The male subject from the courthouse sustained one gunshot wound but survived and was air-lifted to a trauma unit. The front passenger of his vehicle, the female subject from the courthouse, suffered injuries from broken glass. The sedan sustained gunshots to the passenger side, the rear, the front and hood, the front windshield, the interior, and the engine block. On scene, deputies recovered approximately 25 spent 7.62 caliber shell casings. According to ballistics analysis, two different firearms were used during the shooting.
Status of Hatcher DTO Co-conspirators
NameStatusNathaniel Hatcher, IIISentenced to 35 years federal prisonTavarius BlueSentenced to 12 years federal prisonYaquasia DelcarmenSentenced to 8 years in federal prisonAl’Donta EasterlingSentenced to 10 years in federal prisonDarion JeridoSentenced to 6 years and 6 months federal prisonBriyhon JohnsonSentenced to 14 years and 3 months federal prisonDesmond MaxwellPleaded guilty to straw-purchasing firearms in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime and faces up to 25 years in federal prisonJahson HatcherPleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute and possess with the intent to distribute 100 kilograms or more of marijuana and faces a minimum penalty of 5 years, up to 40 years, in federal prisonThis case is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, and the Florida Highway Patrol. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Elisibeth Adams.
This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime. Operation Take Back America streamlines efforts and resources from the Department’s Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETFs) and Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN).
Leader of Transnational Criminal Organization Extradited from Jamaica Sentenced to 57 Months in Federal Prison for Conspiracy to Smuggle Firearms to Trinidad and TobagoRead the Press Release
Tampa, Florida – Shem Wayne Alexander (36, Port of Spain, Trinidad) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge John L. Badalamenti to four years and nine months in federal prison for conspiracy to smuggle firearms from the United States to Trinidad and Tobago. The court also ordered Alexander to forfeit firearms seized during the offense. Alexander previously pleaded guilty. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to the plea agreement and court records, between April 2019 and April 2022, Alexander and his co-conspirators unlawfully exported firearms, firearms components (including upper/lower receivers and gun parts kits), and related items from Florida to Trinidad and Tobago. Alexander is a national of Trinidad and Tobago. In total, more than 200 firearms were smuggled from the United States into Trinidad and Tobago.
On April 21, 2021, members of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service and Customs and Excise Division at the Piarco International Airport in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, seized a shipment containing two punching bags.
X-ray photo of one of the punching bags showing the firearms and firearm components concealed inside.
One of the punching bags cut open.
Trinidad and Tobago Police Service revealing the hidden firearms components.
Concealed firearms, firearms components, and ammunition retrieved from the punching bags.
Alexander and his co-conspirators had sent the shipment from the United States to Trinidad and Tobago describing the contents of said shipment as “household items.” In reality, concealed within the two punching bags were approximately eleven 9mm pistols, two .38 caliber special revolvers, a 12-gauge semi-automatic shotgun, three AR-15 barrel foregrips, 19 lower pistol grip assemblies, 11 forearm bolt assemblies, three AR-15-style barrels with forearm grips, 32 AR-15 magazines, one AR-15 drum magazine, 470 rounds of AR-15 ammunition, 34 9mm magazines, three 9mm drum magazines, 284 9mm rounds, fifteen .38 caliber rounds, 36 shells, six magazine couplers, and two shotgun chokes. Alexander and his co-conspirators arranged this shipment without written notice to the shipper as to the contents of the shipment.
This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, including HSI’s Attaché, Caribbean, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, with assistance provided by the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (Transnational Organized Crime Unit and Special Investigations Unit), United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, the United States Customs and Border Protection, and the Department of Commerce, Office of Export Enforcement. The Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs, the Jamaica Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, and the Jamaica Constabulary Force provided critical support in the extradition of Alexander. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Adam W. McCall.
Bradenton Man Convicted of Distributing MethamphetamineRead the Press Release
Fort Myers, Florida – A federal jury has found Alejandro Marquetti-Blanco (34, Bradenton) guilty of distributing 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. Marquetti-Blanco faces a minimum penalty of 10 years, up to life, in federal prison. His sentencing date has not yet been set. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, Marquetti-Blanco distributed one pound of methamphetamine to a co-conspirator. Another co-conspirator later sold the methamphetamine to an undercover DEA Special Agent in Port Charlotte.
This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Mark Morgan and Benjamin Winter.