Middle District of Florida

Orlando, FL – U.S. District Judge Paul G. Byron has sentenced Melvin Rodriguez (49, Plant City) to five years and four months in federal prison for money laundering. The court also ordered Rodriguez to forfeit $26,000, which is traceable to proceeds of the offense. 

Rodriguez had pleaded guilty on January 4, 2021.

According to court documents, from December 2019 through February 12, 2020, Rodriguez laundered approximately $260,000 in bulk cash that he believed to be the proceeds of narcotics sales. During this period, Rodriguez owned a tire shop in Plant City and used his business to launder what he believed to be drug money. As a part of his scheme, Rodriguez opened bank accounts at different banks and utilized a system of micro-structuring to avoid detection of his criminal activities.  

“The combined efforts of the federal, state, and local agencies comprising the Federal Financial Crimes Task Force led to a successful resolution in this case, demonstrating just how impactful law enforcement can be in the fight to rid our communities of crime,” stated Special Agent in Charge Brian Payne of IRS Criminal Investigation. “This IRS led initiative is designed to harness the best each participating agency and department has to offer. We are proud to work with our partners to uncover and investigate financial and other related crimes.”

This case was investigated by Internal Revenue Service Federal Financial Crimes Task Force, including IRS – Criminal Investigation, the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office, the St. Cloud Police Department, the Winter Park Police Department, and the Kissimmee Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Amanda Daniels.

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Paul G. Byron has sentenced Alan Trent Harley (62, Chuluota) to 15 months in federal prison for wire fraud. The court also ordered Harley to forfeit more than $870,000, which is traceable to proceeds of the offense. 

Harley had pleaded guilty on December 4, 2020.

According to court documents, Harley co-founded Central Medical Systems, a provider of wound care supplies, in 1986. As president and sole active owner of the business, Harley was responsible for submitting claims to Medicare on behalf of Central Medical Systems. From at least 2011 through 2015, Harley knowingly defrauded the government of more than $870,000 by submitting fraudulent claims to Medicare. Although his employees provided him with accurate data about which wound care supplies were sent, and in what quantities, Harley frequently changed that data (with respect to both product type and quantities) before submitting claims to Medicare, in order to obtain fraudulently higher reimbursements from Medicare.

This case was investigated by the Department of Health and Human Services – Office of the Inspector General. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Emily C. L. Chang.

Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Brian J. Davis today sentenced Michael Glenn Chope (57, Orange Park) to 60 years in federal prison for using a minor child to produce sexually explicit images. Chope was arrested on April 3, 2019, and was ordered detained throughout the proceedings in this case.   

Chope had pleaded guilty on May 28, 2020, to two counts of production of child exploitation materials. 

According to court documents, on March 13, 2019, detectives from the Clay County Sheriff’s Office met with Chope in relation to their investigation into a tip received by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Chope confirmed that his email address and telephone number were the same ones identified during the investigation and stated that he was sole user of his electronics and computers. He also admitted to viewing and possessing child exploitation materials, including on devices in his residence. Detectives seized several electronic devices from Chope’s home that were later found to contain numerous images produced by Chope. These images depicted Chope’s sexual abuse and molestation of a young child to whom he had access. Further investigation by the Clay County Sheriff’s Office and Homeland Security Investigations resulted in federal charges against Chope. Following the Clay County Sheriff’s Office’s contact with Chope, he became a fugitive and was later arrested on April 3, 2019, in Rowlett, Texas.

“HSI special agents are committed to finding and putting away those who prey on the innocent,” said HSI Jacksonville Assistant Special Agent in Charge K. Jim Phillips. “Working alongside our law enforcement partners, we will do everything we can to protect children by stopping child predators like this and putting them behind bars for the rest of their lives.”

This case was investigated by the Clay County Sheriff’s Office and Homeland Security Investigations. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Ashley Washington and Kelly Karase.

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

Fort Myers, Florida – A federal jury today found Casey David Crowther (35, Fort Myers) guilty of bank fraud, making a false statement to a lending institution, and two counts of money laundering. Crowther faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison for the bank fraud and false statement charges, and up to 10 years in federal prison for each money laundering charge. A sentencing date has not yet been set. 

According to evidence presented at trial, Crowther obtained a $2.1 million Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan by falsely stating that he intended to use the money to make payroll and pay for rent and utilities for his company Target Roofing and Sheet Metal, Inc. However, Crowther intended to use the money to enrich himself and, once the loan was obtained, quickly used the proceeds to make a series of personal purchases including a nearly $700,000 boat and a $100,000 payment to a former business partner. Crowther concealed the scheme by providing false explanations for the expenditures to his bank, calling the boat “equipment” and the payment to his partner as “payroll.” To ensure that he did not need to pay the loan back under the terms of the PPP program, Crowther added multiple family members to his company’s payroll who did not actually perform work. Crowther also created 39 fake employees, along with fake identification documents including Social Security cards, in an attempt to show that his company was using the funds appropriately on payroll.

Prior to trial, Crowther had pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud and one count of making a false statement to a financial institution related to a mortgage fraud scheme. In that scheme, Crowther created false bank statements to justify a loan he had used to purchase a nearly $1.3 million waterfront house in St. James City, Florida.

This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Trent Reichling and Michael V. Leeman.

Tampa, Florida – Acting United States Attorney Karin Hoppmann announces that Maria Bassi Lauro (66, Davenport) has pleaded guilty in connection with sending threatening mailings containing suspicious powder to elementary schools throughout central Florida. Lauro faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in federal prison.

According to the

plea agreement , beginning in August 2018, Lauro sent threatening mailings to employees at four Central Florida elementary schools where she had worked as a teacher: Citrus Ridge Academy and Four Corners Charter School in Davenport, Groveland Elementary School in Groveland, and Laurel Elementary School in Poinciana. All four of the mailings contained a suspicious powder, and three of the mailings included notes indicating they were “punishment.” Law enforcement and HAZMAT-trained personnel responded to each of the schools after employees opened the mailings and found the unidentified powder.  Ultimately, after testing, authorities determined each of the mailings contained sodium bicarbonate, more commonly known as baking soda.

Lauro had effectively been fired for poor performance from each of the schools to which she sent the mailings, and each victim who received one of the letters had played a role in her performance review at and/or her terminations.

In her plea agreement, Lauro admitted she had sent the mailings because she was upset with each victim and school. Additionally, she admitted she sent the mailings with the intent to threaten each victim and cause them to believe he or she had been exposed to a deadly biological toxin.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Joint Terrorism Task Force. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel George.

Ocala, FL – United States District Judge John Antoon II has sentenced David Shaw (37, Ocala) to six years in federal prison for possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon. The court also ordered Shaw to forfeit the firearm and ammunition. Shaw had pleaded guilty on September 10, 2020.

According to court documents, on December 5, 2019, a deputy from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office attempted to stop Shaw after he ran a stop sign on a stolen motorcycle. Shaw fled from the traffic stop, crashed the motorcycle, and then continued to flee on foot. While giving chase, a deputy observed Shaw discard a loaded 9mm firearm and a backpack. The backpack contained more than 100 rounds of ammunition. 

Shaw has eight prior felony convictions, including burglary of a dwelling, introduction of contraband into a detention facility, trafficking in methamphetamine, and fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer. As a convicted felon, he is prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition under federal law.

This case was investigated by the Marion County Sheriff’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tyrie Boyer.

This is another case prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program (PSN), which is a nationwide, crime reduction strategy aimed at decreasing violent crime in communities. It involves a comprehensive approach to public safety — one that includes investigating and prosecuting crimes, along with prevention and reentry efforts. In the Middle District of Florida, Acting U.S. Attorney Karin Hoppmann coordinates PSN efforts in cooperation with various federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.

Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Brian J. Davis has sentenced Justin Latronica (31, Orange Park) to 10 years in federal prison for attempting to entice a child under the age of 16 to engage in sexual activity. Latronica was also ordered to serve a 10-year term of supervised release and register as a sex offender following his release from prison. Latronica was arrested on January 25, 2020, and was ordered detained throughout the proceedings in this case.

Latronica had pleaded guilty on December 17, 2020.

According to court documents, in the early morning hours of January 25, 2020, Latronica began chatting online with an undercover law enforcement officer who had assumed the persona of a 14-year-old boy. After learning the age of the “child,” Latronica invited the boy to “car play,” and to “kiss and see where it goes.” Latronica offered to come pick up the “child” and to engage in oral sex with the “child.” Latronica suggested the child wear “basket ball [sic] shorts or loose sweat pants.” Latronica traveled to what he believed was the home of the 14-year-old boy just before 2:00 a.m. for the planned sexual encounter. 

“This child predator thought he was going to prey on our communities most vulnerable—instead he came face-to-face with law enforcement,” said HSI Jacksonville Assistant Special Agent in Charge K. Jim Phillips. “Thanks to the dedicated investigators with HSI, the Clay County Sherriff’s Office, the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office, and Naval Criminal Investigative Service this predator will learn his lesson behind bars.” 

This case was investigated by the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, Homeland Security Investigations, and the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kelly S. Karase.

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

Ocala, Florida – Johnny Lee Smith (43, Pensacola) today pleaded guilty to one count of a superseding indictment charging him with possession of a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon. He faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 15 years, and up to life, in federal prison.

Smith had been indicted on September 30, 2020.

According to the facts presented in court, on August 29, 2020, deputies from the Lake County Sheriff’s Office conducted a traffic stop on Smith’s car and saw a loaded .22 caliber revolver on the front passenger seat of the car. The deputies arrested Smith and recovered an additional .22 caliber bullet from his pocket. Smith has 15 prior state felony convictions, including numerous convictions for sale of cocaine. Because of these felony convictions, 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 and the Lake County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys William S. Hamilton and Charles Helm.

This is another case prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program (PSN), which is a nationwide, crime reduction strategy aimed at decreasing violent crime in communities. It involves a comprehensive approach to public safety—one that includes investigating and prosecuting crimes, along with prevention and reentry efforts. In the Middle District of Florida, Acting U.S. Attorney Karin Hoppmann coordinates PSN efforts in cooperation with various federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.

 

Orlando, FL – Acting United States Attorney Karin Hoppmann announces today that Rural/Metro Corporation has agreed to pay the United States $650,000 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by submitting fraudulent claims to Medicare for ambulance transports.

According to the settlement agreement, from January 1, 2010, through December 31, 2016, Rural/Metro submitted claims to Medicare for basic life support, non-emergency services performed in the Middle District of Florida, which the United States contends lacked medical necessity because the patients who were transported either did not qualify for such services or did not require ambulance transport. As such, these services were non-reimbursable by Medicare. The United States also contends that the reasons for these transports was improperly documented. 

“Ambulance transportation services are often necessary, and sometimes critical, for seniors and other Medicare beneficiaries,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Karin Hoppmann.  “We will continue to protect the integrity of our federal health care programs by ensuring that the services rendered, and billed for, are actually necessary and appropriate under the law.”

This settlement resulted from an investigation coordinated by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeremy R. Bloor and Kelley Howard-Allen, with assistance from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General. The settlement resolves the United States’ claims. The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Wendy W. Berger has sentenced Thomas Michael Ibarra (30, Brevard County) to 19 years in federal prison for conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute fentanyl and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking offense. Ibarra had pleaded guilty on October 27, 2020. 

According to court documents, Ibarra was responsible for distributing more than 9 kilograms of fentanyl in the Brevard County area during the approximately one-year period leading up to his arrest. Further, when arrested, Ibarra was in possession of nearly a quarter of a kilogram of fentanyl, and during the execution of a search warrant at his residence, law enforcement recovered two firearms, over three-quarters of a kilogram of fentanyl, scales, and other drug paraphernalia.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Palm Bay Police Department, with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Melbourne Police Department, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn P. Napier.

Tampa, Florida – Senior U.S. District Judge James S. Moody, Jr. today sentenced Jason A. Crowder (42, Zephyrhills) to 10 years and 1 month in federal prison for possession with the intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. Crowder had pleaded guilty on December 8, 2020.

According to court documents, on January 17, 2020, deputies from the Pasco Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at Crowder’s residence and recovered 325 grams of methamphetamine from a safe inside the home.  

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Pasco Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher F. Murray.

Orlando, Florida – Freddie Miguel Velez-Gonzalez (53, Orlando) has pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute more than 40 grams of fentanyl and more than 100 grams of heroin, and to six counts of distribution and possession with the intent to distribute controlled substances. Velez-Gonzalez faces a minimum mandatory sentence of 5 years, and up to 40 years, in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to court documents, Velez-Gonzalez was a member of a drug trafficking organization (DTO) that distributed controlled substances including, heroin, fentanyl, cocaine, marijuana, and tramadol, in the Middle District of Florida. Between approximately April 23 and August 11, 2020, at the direction of law enforcement, a confidential source negotiated and met with Velez-Gonzalez at the same designated location and purchased narcotics from him. This occurred on six different dates and resulted in the purchase of approximately 106 grams of mixtures containing heroin, fentanyl, or a combination of the two substances. Velez-Gonzalez sold the drugs to the confidential source to further a drug trafficking conspiracy with other members of the DTO.

On September 8, 2020, Velez-Gonzalez was arrested alongside his co-defendant, Inginio Santos-Garcia, at an address on Brosche Road in Orlando from which the co-defendants were distributing narcotics in furtherance of the conspiracy. Santos-Garcia pleaded guilty on November 9, 2020, and is awaiting sentencing.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, with assistance from the Orlando Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Jennifer M. Harrington and Ilianys Rivera Miranda.

Ocala, FL – Darrell Pete (32, Ocala) has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to possess a firearm as a convicted felon. He faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

Pete had been indicted on June 3, 2020.

According to court documents, on April 18, 2020, an officer from the Ocala Police Department stopped a vehicle in which Pete was a passenger. After a police canine alerted to the odor of drugs, a search revealed a bag with a .22 caliber firearm and ammunition underneath Pete’s seat. Packaged with the firearm was court documentation in Pete’s name. Pete admitted that the firearm belonged to him, and later acknowledged that he had worked with another person to obtain the firearm and had placed it in the car that day.  

Pete has multiple prior state felony convictions, including several cocaine distribution offenses. As a convicted felon, he is prohibited from possessing a firearm and ammunition under federal law.

This case was investigated by the Ocala Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Tyrie Boyer.

This case is part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence and enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes. For more information on Project Guardian visit www.justice.gov/projectguardian.

Tampa, Florida – James Roland Jones, a/k/a “MillionaireMike” (33, Hermosa Beach, CA), has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit securities fraud. Jones faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to the plea agreement, from 2016 until at least 2017, Jones conspired with another to commit securities fraud. Jones, using the moniker “MillionaireMike,” purchased personally identifiable information (“PII”) on the dark web, including names, addresses, dates of birth, and social security numbers. He used this information, in part, to open and/or operate accounts for the purpose of conducting financial transactions based on material, non-public information related to publicly traded securities, more commonly known as “insider information.”

In April 2017, an FBI undercover employee provided Jones with purported insider information related to a publicly traded, U.S. company (“U.S. Company 1”). From April 18, 2017, until May 4, 2017, Jones and a conspirator conducted numerous securities transactions based on this purported insider information.

In June 2017, Jones gained control of an investment account that had been fraudulently opened in the name of J.L.M. (“the J.L.M. Account”). In July 2017, Jones revealed to the FBI undercover employee that Jones had insider information related to a second publicly-traded, U.S. company (“U.S. Company 2”). From July 14, 2017, until July 26, 2017, Jones and the conspirator conducted numerous securities transactions based on this purported insider information, including some of which that were executed using the J.L.M. Account.

On March 18, 2021, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced (https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2021-51) that it had also charged Jones with related conduct in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana.

The criminal case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (Houston and Tampa Divisions). It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Carlton C. Gammons.

WASHINGTON – A Florida man was charged with federal hate crime in Ocala.

Steven Shields, 24, of Dunnellon was charged with setting fire to and damaging the Queen of Peace Catholic Church in Ocala by a federal grand jury in Orlando, who returned an indictment against him.

According to the indictment, Shields intentionally set fire to the Queen of Peace Catholic Church on July 11, 2020. The indictment alleges that he was motivated to set this fire due to the religious character of the church. Shields is charged with one count of intentional damage to religious property, a hate crime charge that falls under the Church Arson Prevention Act, and one count of using fire to commit a felony.

If convicted, Shields faces a maximum term of 20 years imprisonment for intentionally damaging religious property. Shields faces an additional mandatory minimum of 10 years for using fire to commit a felony. He also faces up to three years of supervised release, a $250,000 fine and restitution.

The FBI, the ATF, the Florida State Fire Marshal, the Florida Bureau of Fire and Arson Explosives Investigations, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, the Marion County Fire and Rescue Department and the Ocala Police Department conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert E. Bodnar, Jr. of the Middle District of Florida and Trial Attorney Maura White of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division are prosecuting the case. 

For more information and resources about the Department’s work to combat hate crimes, visit www.justice.gov/hatecrimes.

An indictment is merely an accusation and Shields is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Brian J. Davis has sentenced Cleophus McCaskill (51, Jacksonville) to nine years in federal prison for possessing firearms as a convicted felon.  The court also ordered McCaskill to forfeit the firearms and ammunition used in the offense.

McCaskill had pleaded guilty on December 8, 2020.

According to court documents, during a search after a traffic stop in Palatka on March 17, 2019, Putnam County Sheriff’s Office deputies found illegal narcotics, drug paraphernalia, and three firearms—a .38 caliber pistol, a stolen .357 caliber pistol with an obliterated serial number, and a 7.62mm caliber AK-47 pistol with a 30-round magazine—in McCaskill’s car.  Each of the firearms was loaded. 

Prior to these events, McCaskill had been convicted of multiple felonies, including attempted first-degree murder and aggravated assault.  Therefore, he 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 Putnam County Sheriff’s Office.  It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David B. Mesrobian.

This is another case prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program (PSN), which is a nationwide crime reduction strategy aimed at decreasing violent crime in communities.  It involves a comprehensive approach to public safety — one that includes investigating and prosecuting crimes, along with prevention and reentry efforts. In the Middle District of Florida, Acting U.S. Attorney Karin Hoppmann coordinates PSN efforts in cooperation with various federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Roy B. Dalton Jr. has sentenced Steven L. Rembert (48, Orange County) to three years in federal prison, to be followed by 3 years supervised release for filing a materially false statement in an application to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for disaster relief benefits.     

Rembert had pleaded guilty on December on December 21, 2020.   

According to court documents, in September 2017, Rembert falsified records concerning his primary residence when submitting an application for assistance to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Individuals and Households Program for Hurricane Irma.                                                                                                          

This case is part of the United States Attorney’s Disaster Fraud Task Force, which was announced in September 2017. This case was investigated by the Department of Homeland Security - Office of Inspector General, with assistance from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Terry B. Livanos.                                                                                         

Members of the public who suspect fraud, waste, abuse, or allegations of mismanagement involving disaster relief operations, or believe they have been the victim of fraud from a person or organization soliciting relief funds on behalf of disaster victims, should contact the National Disaster Fraud Hotline toll free at (866) 720-5721. A live operator 24 hours a day, 7 days a week staffs the telephone line. You can also fax information to the Center at (225) 334-4707, or email it to [email protected]. You may also visit www.justice.gov/usao-mdfl. 

Fort Myers, Florida – U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell has sentenced Andrew Vikash Kummeth (28, Orange Park) to eight years in federal prison for possession of images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children.  Kummeth was also sentenced to a 10-year term of supervised release and was ordered to register as a sex offender. 

Kummeth had pleaded guilty on November 2, 2020.

According to court documents, in October 2018, the FBI conducted an undercover investigation to identify individuals who were involved in the downloading or sharing of images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children over the internet.  During an undercover session on October 24, 2018, and October 25, 2018, Kummeth’s computer was identified as being used to access child sexual abuse materials pornography.  FBI agents executed a federal search warrant at Kummeth’s residence in Punta Gorda, Florida.  During an interview with agents, Kummeth admitted to searching for and viewing child pornography over the internet.  A subsequent forensic examination of Kummeth’s computer gaming tower and his solid state drive storage device revealed images depicting children being sexually abused that Kummeth had accessed and downloaded from the internet.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Fort Myers Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force.  It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Yolande G. Viacava.

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

WASHINGTON – Two Florida men have agreed collectively to pay at least $4 million to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by engaging in schemes to generate prescriptions for compounded drugs and refer those prescriptions to pharmacies in exchange for illegal kickbacks. Many of those prescriptions were billed to TRICARE, the federal health care program providing insurance for active duty military personnel, military retirees, and military dependents. 

Jack Lee Stapleton, of Gulf Stream, Florida, and Jack Hunter Stapleton, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, formerly owned a marketing business in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, which operated under various names, including CV McDowell LLC, and J&J Tel Marketing LLC (the Stapleton Entities). The United States alleged that the Stapleton Entities, under the Stapletons’ direction, used telemarketing to solicit prospective patients to accept compounded drugs regardless of patient need, procured prescriptions for those patients, and then sent those prescriptions to compounding pharmacies that agreed to pay the Stapleton Entities half of the amount TRICARE reimbursed for each prescription. The Stapletons and Stapleton Entities worked with pharmacies to identify compounded drug formulas that maximized the level of reimbursement for the drugs, regardless of the medical need for the chosen formula. They then sought to procure large volumes of prescriptions for those formulas. In many cases, the Stapleton Entities procured prescriptions by paying telemedicine providers who prescribed expensive compounded drugs without ever seeing the patients or conducting any meaningful medical examination. 

“Kickback arrangements undermine confidence in our health care system,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division. “This case demonstrates how kickback schemes often result in the provision of medically unnecessary services at the taxpayer’s expense. The department is committed to holding accountable those who engage in such unlawful conduct.”

“This is another in a long line of this office’s civil and criminal prosecutions of pharmacies, marketers, and prescribers – both individual and corporate – who exploited the TRICARE program for their personal gain and at substantial expense to taxpayers,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Karin Hoppmann for the Middle District of Florida. “We will continue to use all available resources to pursue those who defraud this and other federal healthcare programs and to return monies to those programs.”

“The Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) protects the integrity of Department of Defense programs, such as TRICARE, by rooting out those who choose to divert into their own pockets American taxpayer dollars intended to support our men and women in uniform,” said Special Agent in Charge Cyndy Bruce of the DCIS Southeast Field Office. “Individuals who unjustly enrich themselves will be held accountable.”

“We are grateful to those who came forward to expose these fraudulent practices and vow to continue our efforts to protect taxpayers from fraudsters siphoning money from the nation’s health care system,” said Special Agent in Charge Michael McPherson of the FBI’s Tampa Division.

As part of the settlement, the Stapletons have agreed to pay additional amounts in the event of certain contingencies.

The civil settlement includes the resolution of claims brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by Dwayne Thornton against the Stapletons. Under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act, a private party can file an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of the settlement if the government takes over the case and reaches a monetary agreement with the defendant. Mr. Thornton is a former employee of one of the pharmacies to which the Stapleton Entities referred prescriptions. The share to be awarded from this settlement has not yet been determined. The qui tam case is captioned United States ex rel. Thornton v. National Compounding Co. et al., Case No. 8:15-cv-2647 (M.D. Fla.).

The resolutions obtained in this matter were the result of a coordinated effort between the Department of Justice Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch (Fraud Section), the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida, the FBI, and DCIS.

The matter was investigated by Trial Attorney Nathan Green and Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Harden.

The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.

Two Florida men have agreed collectively to pay at least $4 million to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by engaging in schemes to generate prescriptions for compounded drugs and refer those prescriptions to pharmacies in exchange for illegal kickbacks. Many of those prescriptions were billed to TRICARE, the federal health care program providing insurance for active duty military personnel, military retirees, and military dependents. 

Jack Lee Stapleton, of Gulf Stream, and Jack Hunter Stapleton, of Fort Lauderdale, formerly owned a marketing business in Fort Lauderdale which operated under various names, including CV McDowell LLC, and J&J Tel Marketing LLC (the Stapleton Entities). The United States alleged that the Stapleton Entities, under the Stapletons’ direction, used telemarketing to solicit prospective patients to accept compounded drugs regardless of patient need, procured prescriptions for those patients, and then sent those prescriptions to compounding pharmacies that agreed to pay the Stapleton Entities half of the amount TRICARE reimbursed for each prescription. The Stapletons and Stapleton Entities worked with pharmacies to identify compounded drug formulas that maximized the level of reimbursement for the drugs, regardless of the medical need for the chosen formula. They then sought to procure large volumes of prescriptions for those formulas. In many cases, the Stapleton Entities procured prescriptions by paying telemedicine providers who prescribed expensive compounded drugs without ever seeing the patients or conducting any meaningful medical examination. 

“Kickback arrangements undermine confidence in our health care system,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Department of Justice’s Civil Division. “This case demonstrates how kickback schemes often result in the provision of medically unnecessary services at the taxpayer’s expense. The department is committed to holding accountable those who engage in such unlawful conduct.”

“This is another in a long line of this office’s civil and criminal prosecutions of pharmacies, marketers, and prescribers – both individual and corporate – who exploited the TRICARE program for their personal gain and at substantial expense to taxpayers,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Karin Hoppmann for the Middle District of Florida. “We will continue to use all available resources to pursue those who defraud this and other federal healthcare programs and to return monies to those programs.”

“The Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS) protects the integrity of Department of Defense programs, such as TRICARE, by rooting out those who choose to divert into their own pockets American taxpayer dollars intended to support our men and women in uniform,” said Special Agent in Charge Cyndy Bruce of the DCIS Southeast Field Office. “Individuals who unjustly enrich themselves will be held accountable.”

“We are grateful to those who came forward to expose these fraudulent practices and vow to continue our efforts to protect taxpayers from fraudsters siphoning money from the nation’s health care system,” said Special Agent in Charge Michael McPherson of the FBI’s Tampa Division.

As part of the settlement, the Stapletons have agreed to pay additional amounts in the event of certain contingencies.

The civil settlement includes the resolution of claims brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by Dwayne Thornton against the Stapletons. Under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act, a private party can file an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of the settlement if the government takes over the case and reaches a monetary agreement with the defendant. Thornton is a former employee of one of the pharmacies to which the Stapleton Entities referred prescriptions. The share to be awarded from this settlement has not yet been determined. The qui tam case is captioned United States ex rel. Thornton v. National Compounding Co. et al., Case No. 8:15-cv-2647 (M.D. Fla.).

The resolutions obtained in this matter were the result of a coordinated effort between the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch (Fraud Section), the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida, the FBI, and DCIS.

The matter was investigated by Trial Attorney Nathan Green and Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Harden.

The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.

Jacksonville, FL – U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard has sentenced Wendell Mario Roy (39, Taylor, MI), a/k/a Chico, to 10 years in federal prison for conspiracy to distribute 400 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of fentanyl and conspiracy to commit money laundering. He was also ordered to serve a 5-year term of supervised release.

Roy had pleaded guilty on September 3, 2020.

According to court documents, Roy utilized different “trap houses” in Jacksonville to distribute heroin and fentanyl. As part of a Drug Enforcement Administration investigation, agents learned that a package was deposited into the U.S. mail and addressed to one of Roy’s trap houses. The package was intercepted in Jacksonville, where a law enforcement drug canine alerted to the presence of drugs inside the package. A federal search warrant executed on the package revealed a toy truck with a small package taped to the underside of the truck, and containing a white compressed powdery substance, later determined to be fentanyl (92 grams).

Further investigation uncovered the full extent of the distribution network, resulting in Roy being held responsible for over 400 grams of fentanyl. The investigation also revealed bank accounts that Roy used to launder thousands of dollars in drug proceeds.

“Fentanyl destroys lives, wrecks families, and threatens communities.  The fight against the opioid scourge is real,” stated Assistant Special Agent in Charge Ronald Loecker of IRS Criminal Investigation.  “IRS Special Agents are firmly resolved to lend their financial expertise to track down those who profit from the sale of this and other illicit drugs.”

This case was investigated by Drug Enforcement Administration, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Beatriz Gonzalez and Frank Talbot.

Ocala, Florida – A federal jury has found Michael Kendrick (35, Ocala) guilty of possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute, possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, and possession of a firearm as a convicted felon. Kendrick faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years, and up to, life in federal prison. His sentencing is scheduled for June 21, 2021.

Kendrick was originally indicted on February 5, 2020.

According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, on July 6, 2019, at approximately 1:30 a.m., an Ocala Police Department officer stopped Kendrick for committing a traffic offense. Kendrick immediately fled from the vehicle, discarding a plastic bag containing 29 individual packets of eutylone, a controlled substance. The officer gave chase and apprehended Kendrick. A search of the vehicle revealed a loaded handgun, along with paraphernalia used for distributing narcotics. Kendrick also had three cellphones and $1,844 in currency on his person. Kendrick’s DNA was also found on the recovered firearm. 

As a multi-convicted felon, a career offender and armed career criminal, Kendrick is prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition under federal law.

This case was investigated by the Ocala Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Michael P. Felicetta and Tyrie K. Boyer.

This case is part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence and enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes. For more information on Project Guardian visit www.justice.gov/projectguardian.

Jacksonville, Florida – Acting United States Attorney Karin Hoppmann announces the return of an indictment charging Kristopher Justinboyer Ervin (41, Orange Park) with possession of an unregistered machinegun conversion device.  If convicted, Ervin faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. 

According to court documents, in January 2021, an agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives received information that Ervin may be selling devices referred to as “auto-sears” on a website called AutoKeyCards.com.  Auto-sears are also sometimes referred to as “lightning links.” An auto-sear is a combination of parts designed and intended for converting a weapon to shoot automatically more than one shot, without manual reloading, with a single trigger pull, and is therefore a machinegun under federal law. All machineguns are required to be registered in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record. 

Agents with ATF and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service purchased multiple items from AutoKeyCards.com consisting of metal cards etched with a design for an auto-sear. The agents paid for the metal cards etched with a design for an auto-sear using postal money orders, which Ervin then deposited into his account at a local credit union. An ATF expert analyzed one of the devices that had been purchased undercover and was able to convert an AR-15 style firearm into a machinegun by cutting out the etching for an auto-sear using a commonly available tool and then inserting the auto-sear into the firearm.

On February 22, 2021, agents surveilled Ervin as he delivered 22 packages to a post office in Orange Park. A Postal Inspector obtained warrants to search the 22 packages and found that each of them contained a metal card etched with an auto-sear design. A Postal Inspector was able to see that Ervin had created labels for more than 1,200 mailings that appeared to contain auto-sear devices.

On March 2, 2021, Ervin was arrested in Columbia County, Florida. Search warrants were executed on Ervin’s vehicle and residence, resulting in the recovery of $3,700 in cash, approximately 1,552 auto-sear devices, machinery that was used to manufacture the auto-sear devices, other firearms, computers, and packaging materials consistent with those Ervin had used to mail packages containing auto-sears. Ervin’s websites have been seized by ATF.

An indictment is merely a 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 Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, and the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Laura Cofer Taylor.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence and enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes. For more information on Project Guardian visit www.justice.gov/projectguardian.

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Carlos E. Mendoza has sentenced Jacob Luis Bonilla-Rivera (27, Kissimmee) and Juan Omar Rodriguez, Jr. (21, Auburndale) to 15 years in federal prison, respectively, for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of that conspiracy. The court also ordered Bonilla-Rivera and Rodriguez to forfeit $639,325 in currency, two firearms, and a vehicle used in the commission of the offenses. Bonilla-Rivera Rodriguez had pleaded guilty in December 2020.  

According to court documents, starting on September 11, 2020, Bonilla-Rivera engaged in a series of phone calls with individuals he believed to be cocaine dealers but who were, in fact, undercover agents working on behalf of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). These discussions culminated in an agreement for Bonilla-Rivera to purchase 20 kilograms of cocaine in Orlando. On September 16, 2020, HSI agents met with Bonilla-Rivera and Rodriguez, where the conspirators showed HSI agents $600,000 in cash that they had brought to the deal in a hidden compartment in one of their vehicles.  After showing the agents the cash, Bonilla-Rivera and Rodriguez proceeded to a location where HSI agents had arranged to show them the cocaine to be purchased. After inspecting the cocaine, Bonilla-Rivera and Rodriguez returned to their car to retrieve the cash from the hidden compartment and were arrested. Upon searching both vehicles, HSI agents found that both Bonilla-Rivera and Rodriguez had possessed loaded firearms inside vehicles they had driven to the meeting, along with a total of $639,325 cash.

“This joint investigation into a transnational criminal organization illustrates how important our partnerships are in combating illegal drugs,” said HSI Orlando Assistant Special Agent in Charge David J. Pezzutti. “The sentencing and seizures associated with this case have made our community safer.”

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, with assistance from Seminole County Sherriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Dana E. Hill.

Orlando, Florida – United States District Judge Carlos E. Mendoza has sentenced Jerimiah Swanson (22, Cocoa) to six years and eight months in federal prison for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute more than 40 grams of fentanyl.  Swanson was found guilty by a federal jury on December 10, 2020. He had been indicted on March 18, 2020. 

According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, starting no later than November 2019, and continuing through February 2020, a confidential informant working for the Drug Enforcement Administration made six recorded purchases totaling over 150 grams of fentanyl outside Swanson’s home in Cocoa, Florida. Law enforcement also conducted a search of Swanson’s home in February 2020 and found baggies, digital scales covered with fentanyl and cocaine, and firearms in Swanson’s bedroom.

Swanson’s co-defendant previously pleaded guilty to his role in the conspiracy. He was sentenced to eight years in federal prison on December 16, 2020.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration, with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Florida Highway Patrol and the Titusville Police Department.  It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Shawn P. Napier and E. Jackson Boggs Jr.

Fort Myers, FL – A federal jury has found Jonathan Anthony Reid (31, Gibsonton) guilty of possessing a firearm and ammunition as a previously convicted felon, in connection with the shooting of two men outside a Fort Myers night club in January 2020.  Under the Armed Career Criminal Act, Reid faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years, and up to life, in federal prison.  His sentencing hearing is scheduled for June 14, 2021.

Reid was indicted on June 3, 2020.

According to evidence presented at trial, in the early morning hours of January 29, 2020, Reid shot two men who were standing in front of the entrance of a night club on Cleveland Avenue in Fort Myers, before fleeing the scene in a silver sedan with a stolen license plate.  Reid made efforts to conceal his identity during the shooting by wearing a hooded sweatshirt, gloves, and a ski mask, but he later crashed and abandoned his getaway car while fleeing from the shooting scene.  In his wrecked getaway car, law enforcement found a Glock .45 caliber handgun, nine rounds of .45 caliber ammunition, a camouflage ski mask, a hooded sweatshirt, and blue latex gloves.  DNA analysis later revealed that Reid’s DNA profile matched DNA extracted from the ski mask, the sweatshirt, a ripped latex glove, and the firearm that was recovered from the vehicle.  Three cell phones were also found in the car, all of which were later connected to Reid.  

This case was investigated by United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the Fort Myers Police Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office.  It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Simon R. Eth and Shannon Laurie.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence and enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes. For more information on Project Guardian visit www.justice.gov/projectguardian.

Orlando, Florida – United States District Judge Wendy W. Berger has sentenced Ronald Brouillard (72, Titusville) to 80 years in federal prison for production and possession of images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children. Brouillard was also ordered to serve a 10-year term of supervised release and register as a sex offender if he is ever released from federal prison.

Brouillard had pleaded guilty on October 6, 2020.    

According to evidence presented at sentencing, Brouillard sexually abused two children, ages 2 and 8, that he had access to. Brouillard produced videos of the sexual assault of the younger child on two separate occasions using his cellphone. As a result, the Court found that Brouillard had engaged in a pattern of sexual abuse involving these children. In addition, Brouillard possessed 19 videos and more than 1,500 images that depicted the sexual abuse of children between the ages of 2 and 12.

“This is another example of the exemplary work being done by the special agents and prosecutors working this difficult and disturbing violation,” said Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Tampa Division Michael McPherson. “We applaud the 80-year sentence handed down in this case that will ensure this predator can never prey on the young and innocent again.”

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn P. Napier.  

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

Jacksonville, Florida – Acting United States Attorney Karin Hoppman announces today that a federal jury has found Colum Patrick Moran, Jr. (42, Jacksonville) guilty of attempting to entice minors to produce images and videos depicting child sexual abuse and also of possessing materials depicting the sexual exploitation of children. Moran face a minimum mandatory penalty of 15 years, and up to 110 years, in federal prison and a potential life term of supervised release. A sentencing hearing is set for July 12, 2021. Moran was arrested on March 6, 2019, and has been in custody since that date. 

According to court documents and evidence and testimony presented during the three-day trial, between 2015 and late 2018, Moran, using the name “Emily lover,” made numerous postings to several internet motherhood blog websites. These blog websites were designed and intended to share and exchange information about motherhood, childcare, useful commercial products, and other topics related to family life. During this period, Moran repeatedly posted sexually explicit comments that targeted mothers and their young children by name on these blogs. Further, Moran intentionally posted graphic comments requesting that several mothers produce and post images and videos of their children engaging in sexually explicit conduct. 

On March 6, 2019, FBI agents and other officers executed a search warrant at Moran’s apartment and seized several smart phones and computers that contained more than 1,000 images and videos depicting young children, including infants and toddlers, being sexually abused. One of the smart phones had been used by Moran to access numerous motherhood blog websites and contained images of sexually explicit postings made by Moran with usernames “Emily lover” and “Anonymous.” Agents also discovered a plastic storage bin in a bedroom closet that contained two dozen pairs of little girls’ underwear, as well as several firearms, ammunition, and a bulletproof vest with Velcro law enforcement identification patches.     

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Jacksonville and Los Angeles, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, with the assistance of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) in Alexandria, Virginia. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

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

Tampa, Florida – Gabriel Antonio Thompkins, II (25, Tampa) has pleaded guilty to making a false statement to a federally licensed firearms dealer in connection with the attempted purchase of a firearm, and to possessing firearms and ammunition as a convicted felon. Thompkins faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison for the false statement charge and up to 10 years’ imprisonment for the firearms possession offense.

According to the plea agreement, Thompkins was a member of the Grant Park neighborhood gang in Tampa. In furtherance of the gang’s activities, he sold drugs, illegally possessed firearms and ammunition, fled from law enforcement, and posted videos to social media.

On November 17, 2017, Thompkins fled the scene of a shooting in Tampa, driving away in a vehicle at a high rate of speed. He then crashed the vehicle into a pole and fled on foot as Tampa Police officers pursued him. The officers ultimately found Thompkins hiding under a house. On December 18, 2017, Thompkins pleaded guilty to the felony charge of fleeing to elude (high speed) in the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit Court in Hillsborough County.

On December 8, 2019, Thompkins went to Shoot Straight Tampa, a shooting range/gun store, and attempted to purchase a .45 caliber pistol. Thompkins filled out Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Form 4473 and falsely claimed that he had not been convicted of a felony. Shoot Straight Tampa conducted a background check and denied the purchase because of Thompkins’s convicted felon status.

On January 11, 2020, officers from the Tampa Police Department attempted a traffic stop on a vehicle Thompkins was driving. Thompkins fled, first in the vehicle and then on foot. From a backpack found in the car, the officers recovered approximately 170 grams of marijuana. They also located a Kel-Tec 556 pistol.

On October 6, 2020, law enforcement executed arrest and search warrants at Thompkins’s home in Tampa. Inside his bedroom they found a loaded, stolen .40 caliber handgun. They also recovered a loaded, stolen Mini Draco 7.62x39 mm firearm in a shed. As a previously convicted felon, Thompkins is prohibited from possessing a firearm or ammunition under federal law.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Tampa Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher F. Murray.

This case is also part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence and enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes. For more information on Project Guardian visit www.justice.gov/projectguardian.

 

Tampa, Florida – Benjamin Tucker Patz, a/k/a “Parlay Patz,” (24, Napa, CA) today pleaded guilty to transmitting threats in interstate or foreign commerce. He faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to the plea agreement, on July 20, 2019, the Tampa Bay Rays baseball team lost a home game to the Chicago White Sox. That same day, four Rays’ players, as well as a player for the Chicago White Sox, received direct messages on Instagram from Patz in which he threatened to carry out acts of violence against them. The messages included the following string of text sent to one Tampa Bay Rays players:

• “I will sever your neck open you pathetic c**tbag”
• “I will enter your home while you sleep”
• “And sever your neck open”
• “I will kill your entire family”
• “Everyone you love will soon cease”
• “I will cut up your family” and “Dismember the[m] alive.”

 

Patz sent the messages knowing that they would be viewed by the player and his family members as a true threat to injure the person of another.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is part of the Bureau’s Integrity in Sport and Gaming Initiative, which is designed to tackle illegal sports gambling and combat threats of influence from criminal enterprises. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Patrick Scruggs.

 

Tampa, FL – Acting United States Attorney Karin Hoppmann announces the return of an indictment charging Henry Lee White, III (26, Orlando) with sex trafficking by force, fraud, and coercion, transportation of an individual in interstate commerce for the purpose of prostitution, coercion and enticement, and being a felon in possession of ammunition. If convicted on all counts, White faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison. The indictment also notifies White that the United States intends to forfeit assets alleged to have facilitated these offenses.

According to the indictment, from June 2, 2020, through January 7, 2021, White used force, threats of force, fraud, and coercion to cause Victim 1 to engage in prostitution. During that time, White trafficked Victim 1 within the Middle District of Florida, and transported Victim 1 from Florida to Georgia so that Victim 1 could engage in prostitution. The indictment also charges that White, a convicted felon, was found in possession of ammunition in violation of federal law.

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, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, and the Tampa Police Department. It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lisa M. Thelwell.

This case was brought as part of the Tampa Bay Human Trafficking Task Force of the Middle District of Florida, one of 13 task forces in the country to receive grant funding from the Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance. The Task Force is a collaboration of local, state, and federal law enforcement agents working together with organizations to detect, investigate, and prosecute human trafficking in the Tampa Bay area. This includes trafficking of minors, forced labor, transnational sex trafficking, and sex trafficking of adults by force, fraud, or coercion. More information about the Tampa Bay Human Trafficking Task Force can be found at www.justice.gov/usao-mdfl/humantrafficking. Information on the Department of Justice’s efforts to combat human trafficking can be found at www.justice.gov/humantrafficking.

Jacksonville, Florida – Arthur Jay Traxler, Jr. (55, Monroe, MI) today pleaded guilty to attempted online enticement of a minor to engage in sexual activity. Traxler faces a minimum mandatory term of 10 years, and up to life, in federal prison.  Traxler has been detained since his initial arrest in Michigan on November 9, 2020. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to the plea agreement, between July 21 and August 4, 2020, Traxler engaged in a series of online conversations with a person whom he believed to be a 14-year-old child. Unbeknownst to Traxler, this “child” was an undercover FBI agent. During the course of the online conversations, Traxler discussed, in detail, his desire to have the “child” send him images of the “child” engaging in sexually explicit conduct. 

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ashley Washington.

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

Fort Myers, Florida – U.S. District Judge Thomas P. Barber has sentenced Steven Clements Telgenhof (28, Cape Coral) to 17 years and 6 months in federal prison for distribution of and possession with the intent to distribute fentanyl.  Telgenhof had pleaded guilty on February 6, 2020.

According to court documents, on March 12, 2019, Telgenhof sold the victim approximately one gram of fentanyl. The victim ingested the fentanyl later that evening and was found in his bedroom, unresponsive, by his parents early the next morning. Attempts to resuscitate the victim were unsuccessful and he passed away from acute fentanyl toxicity four days later.

Evidence gathered during the investigation led law enforcement to Telgenhof’s Cape Coral residence on March 22, 2019, where they executed a search warrant and seized Telgenhof’s stash of fentanyl and nearly $8,000 in proceeds from his distribution activities.

This case was investigated by the Cape Coral Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael V. Leeman.

Orlando, Florida – Jeremy Kee Anderson (50, Minnesota) has pleaded guilty to 12 counts of wire fraud, 7 counts of mail fraud, and 1 count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud. He faces up to 20 years in federal prison on each count. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to court documents, Anderson led a conspiracy that defrauded more than 200 victims out of over $10.3 million through investments offered in connection with a company called Tri-Med Corporation. Anderson was the founder and principal owner of Tri-Med.   

The investment fraud scheme involved the alleged purchase of medical receivables by Tri-Med, and services that were provided to accident victims who were represented by personal injury attorneys. Payment of those medical receivables was supposed to have been made from the proceeds of litigation or an insurance claim made against a general liability or automobile insurance policy. Each of the medical receivables was also supposed to be secured by a “Letter of Protection,” a letter that is provided by a patient’s personal injury attorney to a medical services professional as an incentive to provide services to a patient. The letter is a contract involving a patient, the patient's attorney, and the medical services provider by which the patient and attorney agree to pay all or part of the total billed by the medical services provider from the proceeds of any pre-suit settlement, lawsuit settlement, or judgment that the patient may obtain.

To fund Tri-Med’s alleged purchases of medical receivables, Anderson and his conspirators solicited individuals to participate in an “investment program” in which investors’ money would be used by Tri-Med to buy medical receivables “backed” by letters of protection. As part of their solicitations, Anderson and his conspirators represented to investors that that their investments were safe and that investor funds would be held in a trust account that was controlled by an attorney. To assure investors that their investments were secure, Tri-Med claimed that it would transfer its interest in the letter of protection to the investor in a document called an “Assignment of Interest Certificate.” Those representations were false. 

Of the more than $17 million raised from over 200 investors, only approximately $2.7 million was ever transferred from Tri-Med to the attorney’s trust account. The vast majority of the funds raised from investors never made it to that account. Over $6.5 million was paid to the sales people and the operators of Tri-Med or was used by them to benefit themselves or pay business expenses, while approximately $2.3 million was paid as distributions to investors to make them believe that their investments were profitable. In fact, Tri-Med did not purchase enough medical receivables to secure the incoming investments, so it fabricated “Assignment of Interest Certificates.” The result was that more than 200 victims lost over $10.3 million in this scheme.

Anderson is the fourth person to be charged as part of this conspiracy.  Previously, the following individuals were charged and sentenced to federal prison terms for their roles in this conspiracy: Anthony Nicholas, Jr. (63, Hudson) received 11 years and 3 months and Eric Ager (78, Orlando) and Irwin Ager (84, Orlando) each were sentenced to 24 months’ imprisonment.

This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and the State of Florida’s Office of Financial Regulation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Shawn P. Napier and Roger B. Handberg, III.

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Charlene Edwards Honeywell has sentenced Asa Nall (50, Largo) to 10 years in federal prison for attempted enticement of a child. The court also ordered Nall to forfeit the electronic devices that were used in commission of the offense. 

Nall was found guilty by a jury on October 29, 2020.

According to evidence presented at trial, Nall communicated online and over text messages with someone he believed to be a 14-year-old child. In reality, Nall had been communicating with an undercover agent. For more than a month, Nall repeatedly asked the child to produce sexually explicit images for him, specifying that he wanted to see her fully nude to include close-up photos of the child’s genitalia. Nall also repeatedly requested to meet the child for sex, asking her to “sneak away” and “skip school” to meet with him. In the conversations, Nall discussed in graphic detail the sex acts that he would engage in when they met. On October 16, 2019, Nall traveled to meet the child for sex, and he was subsequently arrested.

Law enforcement agents recovered two condoms in Nall’s pants pocket and the cellphone he had used to communicate with the child. A search of the phone revealed that Nall had also saved the child’s name to his contact list.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Largo Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Lisa M. Thelwell and Erin C. Favorit.

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

Tampa, Florida – U.S. District Judge Thomas Barber has sentenced Devon Cohen (33, Tampa) to five years in federal prison for possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon. The court also ordered Cohen to forfeit the firearm and ammunition. 

Cohen was found guilty following a bench trial on December 8, 2020.

According to court documents, officers stopped a car that Cohen was driving after he had committed multiple traffic violations. Officers searched the vehicle and found a loaded pistol on the center console. Cohen admitted to the officers that he possessed the gun. Cohen had previously been committed of multiple felonies, including several narcotics offenses, and therefore is not permitted to possess a gun or ammunition under federal law.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Tampa Police Department. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Callan Albritton.

This is another case prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s “Project Safe Neighborhoods” Program (PSN), which is a nationwide crime reduction strategy aimed at decreasing violent crime in communities. It involves a comprehensive approach to public safety — one that includes investigating and prosecuting crimes, along with prevention and reentry efforts. In the Middle District of Florida, Acting U.S. Attorney Karin Hoppmann coordinates PSN efforts in cooperation with various federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.

Tampa, Florida – Acting United States Attorney Karin Hoppmann announces the unsealing of an

indictment charging Gerardo Gomez-Lubo, a/k/a Francisco Niño (42, Colombia), with conspiracy to distribute large amounts of cocaine knowing and intending it to be imported into the United States. If convicted on all counts, Gerardo Gomez-Lubo faces a maximum penalty of life in federal prison. 

According to court documents, beginning in approximately September 2017 and continuing through 2019, Gomez-Lubo was part of a transnational criminal conspiracy that transported cocaine directly from Colombia to the United States, including Texas, California, Fort Lauderdale and Miami, Florida.

In April 2018, an indictment was returned in the Middle District of Florida charging Gerardo Gomez-Lubo and his co-conspirator, Piero Antonio Lubo-Barros,

with conspiracy to distribute cocaine. Gomez-Lubo was arrested on September 1, 2019 as he arrived at Tocumen International Airport in Panama at the request of the United States. The United States sought his extradition, which Panama granted on February 4, 2021, by Presidential Executive Order.

In January 2021, Piero Antonio Lubo-Barros was arrested in Costa Rica at the request of the United States, living under an assumed identity. He is currently pending extradition to the United States.

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 United States Drug Enforcement Administration. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs of the Department’s Criminal Division provided significant support with the defendant’s extradition. This case will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Diego F. Novaes.

Tampa, Florida – Marvin Lee Carter, Sr. (41, Tampa) has pleaded guilty to distributing controlled substances, which use resulted in serious bodily injury. Carter faces a mandatory minimum penalty of 20 years, and up to life, in federal prison.

According to the plea agreement, on the Fourth of July weekend in 2019, Carter distributed fentanyl-laced cocaine to a man who later used the drugs and overdosed. The man’s life was saved by the intervention of a responding police officer.

This case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Tampa Police Department, with assistance from Tampa Fire Rescue. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Randall Leonard.

 

Jacksonville, Florida – Kenyan Shondre Scott has pleaded guilty to aiding and assisting another person with the filing of a fraudulent tax return and to filing a fraudulent tax return on his own behalf. He faces a maximum penalty of three years in federal prison on each charge. Scott has also agreed to pay $553,403 in restitution to the IRS for the tax loss caused by all of the offenses charged in the indictment, including those to which he did not plead guilty. A sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to the plea agreement, Scott was the owner and operator of a tax return preparation business in Jacksonville. In preparing income tax returns for others, Scott reported false information, including false claims for deductible expenses and losses, to reduce the amount owed by, or to increase the amount refunded to, the taxpayers. He then electronically filed these tax returns with the IRS, causing the IRS either to issue refunds when tax would have been owed, in the absence of the fraud, or for larger refunds to be otherwise issued.

Scott pleaded guilty to preparing and filing a fraudulent 2014 tax return for another individual in which he represented that the taxpayer had a business with $425 in income and $4,552 in expenses, resulting in a purported business loss of $4,127, and he subtracted this business “loss” from the taxpayer’s gross income. He also represented that the taxpayer was entitled to a general business credit of $2,850 and claimed this amount as a credit against the taxes owed by the taxpayer. When Scott made these representations, he knew that the taxpayer was a wage-earning employee of a corporation and did not operate a business in 2014.

After Scott filed the tax return, the IRS issued a refund of $2,734 to the taxpayer. In the absence of the false statements, the taxpayer would have owed additional tax of $738, meaning that the tax loss to the IRS was $3,472.

According to court documents, Scott prepared and filed a fraudulent 2014 tax return on his own behalf in which he represented that his filing status was single, that he had earned wages, salaries, and tips of $12,875, that he had net business income of $28,467, that he was entitled to a general business credit of $3,500, and that he had federal income tax withheld of $4,532. When Scott made these representations, he knew that his filing status should have been either married filing jointly or married filing separately, that he had not earned any wages, salaries, or tips, that he had net business income of approximately $297,110, that he was not entitled to a general business credit, and that he had not had any federal income tax withheld.

After Scott filed the tax return, the IRS issued a $50 refund to him. In the absence of the false statements, Scott would have owed additional tax of $108,033, causing a tax loss to the IRS of $108,083.

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

Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Marcia Morales Howard has sentenced Anthony Grier (Jacksonville, 33) to 10 months in federal prison, followed by 3 years of supervised release, for possessing marijuana while in federal custody at the Nassau County Jail. This sentence has been ordered to run consecutive to a 7-month federal sentence Grier was already serving, as well as consecutive to an additional 3-month state sentence he had received for battery on an inmate.

Grier had pleaded guilty on December 1, 2020.

According to court documents, Grier was being held in the Nassau County Jail as a federal inmate after he was sentenced to 7 months in prison for violating his federal supervision. On February 11, 2020, deputies from the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office detected the scent of marijuana and traced it to the cell occupied by Grier. A law enforcement drug canine was deployed and did an open-air sniff of the cell. The canine alerted to the odor of marijuana, but no marijuana was found in the cell. Grier was escorted out of the cell to be searched. Before the search began, Grier produced a medical glove containing 15 marijuana cigarettes that he had on him. 

This case was investigated by the United States Marshals Service. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Ashley Washington.

Jacksonville, Florida – Acting United States Attorney Karin Hoppmann announces the return of an indictment charging Samuel Christopher Templeman (46, Jacksonville) and Deborah Lynn Templeman (50, Jacksonville), a married couple, with conspiring to sex traffic a child. Samuel Templeman is also charged with sex trafficking a child, and Deborah Templeman is charged with possessing child sex abuse material. If convicted on all counts, Samuel Templeman faces a minimum mandatory penalty of 10 years, and up to two life terms, in federal prison. Deborah Templeman faces up to life in federal prison. 

According to the

indictment , beginning at least by November 2019 and continuing through December 11, 2019, Samuel and Deborah Templeman conspired to recruit, entice, harbor, transport, provide, obtain, maintain, patronize, and solicit a female child (Minor Victim 1), knowing that Minor Victim 1 was under the age of 18 and would be caused to engage in a commercial sex act. During the same time period, Samuel Templeman knowingly recruited, enticed, harbored, transported, provided, obtained, and maintained Minor Victim 1, knowing that she was under the age of 18 and would be caused to engage in a commercial sex act. 

The indictment also charges that on December 7, 2019, Deborah Templeman possessed a cellphone containing a video depicting a child engaging in sexually explicit conduct.

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 Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Laura Cofer Taylor and Special Assistant United States Attorney Erin Wolfson.

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

Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Brian J. Davis has sentenced Deshawn Maceo Richardson (27, Jacksonville) to 10 years in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. The court also ordered Richardson to forfeit a Glock .40 caliber pistol and ammunition. Richardson had pleaded guilty on October 07, 2020. 

According to court documents, Richardson sold suspected methamphetamine several times in July and August 2019. Immediately following the final drug transaction, in the parking lot of a hotel on the southside of Jacksonville, Richardson fled from law enforcement on foot. While fleeing, Richardson dropped a stolen .40 caliber Glock pistol with a 30-round capacity magazine. The magazine had 17 rounds of ammunition and one round in the chamber.

Prior to these events, Richardson had been convicted of grand theft auto, sale/manufacture/deliver cocaine, sale/deliver heroin, and child abuse and therefore was prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition under federal law.

This case was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Beatriz Gonzalez and Special Assistant United States Attorney Cyrus P. Zomorodian.   

This case is part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce Federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the Fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence and enhances coordination of Federal, State, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes. For more information on Project Guardian visit www.justice.gov/projectguardian.

Tampa, Florida - After 21 years with the Department of Justice, and 32 years’ government service, United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez will resign as chief law enforcement officer for the Middle District of Florida (MDFL) on February 27, 2021.

“Serving as the United States Attorney for the MDFL these past three years has been my highest honor and, serving the United States for these last 32 years has been my highest privilege,” said Chapa Lopez. “It has been my honor to serve with a fantastic group of federal, state and local law enforcement partners. Together, we have done great work to protect our communities here in the MDFL. It has also been my greatest honor to work with the tremendously talented group of AUSAs and staff of the U.S. Attorney’s Office here in the MDFL. Thank you all for your partnership and support these last three years. My respect for each and every one of you is immeasurable. Team MDFL is the best!”

   Chapa Lopez also said, “I want to thank Senator Marco Rubio and former Senator Bill Nelson for their support and confidence in me to lead this office. I am grateful to Attorney General Jeff Sessions for trusting me with this position when he appointed me interim U.S. Attorney, and to Attorney General Bill Barr for his trust in my abilities when he asked me to be on the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee.”

U.S. Attorney Chapa Lopez came to the job with a significant amount of experience that prepared her to lead the MDFL. Previously, she served on active duty as a United States Army Officer, achieving the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.  In April of 2000, she joined the USAO-MDFL as an Assistant United States Attorney as a narcotics prosecutor, working to dismantle transnational drug trafficking organizations. Immediately prior to serving as U.S. Attorney, Chapa Lopez served as DOJ Deputy Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico, working closely with Mexican Justice and Law Enforcement counterparts, as well as other international stakeholders, to disrupt cross-border crime. 

“Maria Chapa Lopez rendered good and faithful service as United States Attorney for the Middle District of Florida. In her dealings with the Court, Ms. Lopez always represented the United States with the utmost professionalism. The Court wishes her well in her future endeavors” said Timothy J. Corrigan, Chief Judge, Middle District of Florida. 

DEA Special Agent in Charge Keith Weis commends USA Chapa Lopez for her outstanding leadership. “During her tenure, she has supported all the agencies focused on reducing supplies of dangerous drugs such as fentanyl, heroin, methamphetamines, diverted prescription drugs, cocaine and related violence impacting our Florida Communities,” said SAC Weis. “She has been instrumental in dismantling significant transnational criminal organizations narcotics smuggling and money laundering operations from South America to shores of the United States. USA Chapa Lopez has been extremely dedicated to enforcing the rule of law with the tireless goal of helping those communities and families adversely affected by illicit drug distribution. The DEA wishes USA Chapa Lopez the best in her next endeavors, she is an invaluable leader and friend who will be greatly missed by law enforcement.”

“U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa López has been a quintessential partner in combatting violent crime throughout the Middle District Florida for more than 20 years. Mrs. Chapa López tirelessly worked with the ATF Tampa Field Division to investigate and aggressively prosecute some of the most violent offenders in the Middle District. On behalf of the women and men of the ATF Tampa Field Division, I thank Mrs. Chapa López for her service to the United States. Her leadership as United States Attorney made our communities safer. You will be missed,” said ATF Special Agent in Charge Craig W. Saier.

“Under the leadership of United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez, the law enforcement community across the Middle District of Florida has become more united and collaborative. Her commitment to protect the most vulnerable in our communities as well as the way she led her office to take on emerging threats is just part of the legacy she leaves. We wish you all the best in your next chapter Maria.” said Kevin Sibley, Acting Special Agent in Charge for Homeland Security Investigations.   

“It has truly been an honor and a privilege working alongside US Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez over the past three years protecting and defending the Middle District of Florida,” said Sheriff Chad Chronister, Hillsborough County. “I am saddened to see her leave, but truly grateful for the dedication she has put into causes that affect our Hillsborough County residents. Through our partnership, we have worked to combat issues of both opioid abuse and human trafficking throughout our state, bringing drug dealers responsible for fatal overdoses to justice and putting behind bars those who seek to buy or profit off of the exchange of another individual’s body for sex. I look forward to continuing the work we have started together as she moves on to the next step in, what is sure to be, a continuously rewarding career in service.”

“The St. Petersburg Police Department has enjoyed a cooperative and mutually supportive relationship with our valued criminal justice partners at the Department of Justice, led by U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez,” said Chief Anthony Holloway, St. Petersburg Police Department. “The DOJ is staffed with tremendously talented members and I am proud of our collective achievements and the significant progress that has been made toward improving the lives of individuals in our community through better public safety and police protection and most recently for the support of the Tampa Bay Human Trafficking Task Force. I look forward to the opportunity to work together someday soon and seeing her many future accomplishments.”

“U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez has truly made Manatee County a safer place to live,” said Sheriff Rick Wells. “Under her leadership, several high-profile drug dealers and gang members have been removed from our community. I will be forever indebted to her and the commitment she made to prosecute those responsible for distributing fentanyl throughout Manatee County. She will be greatly missed, and I wish her all the best in her future endeavors.”  

“We’ve had a productive and strong working relationship with U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez.  Her reputation is one of being committed to her work and has shown through her accomplishments during her appointment. We are grateful to have had the opportunity to work with her,” said Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, Pinellas County.

“Maria Chapa Lopez led undeniable efforts that resulted in fewer victims of crime and ensuring the safety of our neighborhoods,” said Chief Brian Dugan, Tampa Police Department. “Although she will be missed, our law enforcement agents are better prepared and trained to take on any criminal element due to her years of dedicated service.”

“U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez has done an outstanding job protecting the citizens of the Middle District of Florida,” said Sheriff Christopher Nocco, Pasco County. “From terrorism to illegal pharmaceuticals, violent crime, and human trafficking, her leadership to prosecute criminals and build coalitions worked to make Pasco, along with all of Tampa Bay, a safer community.”

“Our relationship with the Middle District of Florida is paramount to the cycle of success needed to combat and counter transnational organized crime.  I thank my colleague, Ms. Maria Chapa Lopez, for her professionalism and dutiful service as US Attorney for the past three years, and deeply value her leadership and gracious friendship. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with her successor and I wish Maria the very best,” said Rear Adm. Eric C. Jones, Seventh District Commander. 

“The U.S. Attorney’s Office is a key partner with U.S. Probation. Under Maria’s leadership, the communication between our agencies has flourished. The U.S. Attorney’s Office has been a responsive and reliable partner in our promotion of the fair administration of justice,” said Joe Collins, Chief U.S. Probation Officer.

“Maria has been a dedicated partner and a trusted ally who has served the Middle District of Florida with honor and distinction,” said State Attorney Melissa Nelson of the Fourth Judicial Circuit. “She undoubtedly will continue to do great things in her community.”

Upon the U.S. Attorney’s resignation, Karin Hoppmann, who served as Ms. Chapa Lopez’s First Assistant U.S. Attorney, will become Acting United States Attorney for the Middle District of Florida by virtue of the Vacancies Reform Act. Ms. Hoppmann becomes Acting U.S. Attorney for up to 300 days, and she will serve in that position until such time as an Interim U.S. Attorney is appointed or the President nominates and the United States Senate confirms a new United States Attorney.

Link to summary of highlights of the USAO MDFL’s work during U.S. Attorney Chapa Lopez’s tenure.

Jacksonville, Florida – United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces the unsealing of an indictment charging Jeffrey Siegmeister (52, Live Oak) and Marion Michael O’Steen (41, Old Town) with conspiracy to use a facility of commerce for unlawful activity, conspiracy to commit extortion, and aiding and abetting extortion. Siegmeister is additionally charged with conspiracy to commit federal program bribery, federal program bribery, wire fraud, and filing false tax returns. O’Steen is additionally charged with failure to file a form in connection with the receipt of currency. [See Penalties Chart at bottom of release]

Siegmeister was arrested in Arizona today, and will make his initial appearance in federal court (Flagstaff, AZ) on Monday, March 1. O’Steen appeared in federal court (Jacksonville, FL) today and pleaded not guilty. He was released on a $100,000 bond.

According to the indictment, Siegmeister was the elected State Attorney for the Third Judicial Circuit of Florida from 2013 through 2019, and O’Steen was a defense attorney who represented clients being prosecuted by Siegmeister’s office. As part of the conspiracy to use a facility of commerce for unlawful activity, between approximately November 2017 and May 16, 2019, O’Steen requested official acts from Siegmeister—including the favorable disposition of charges filed against his clients, and the delay of official actions in order to enable O’Steen to obtain additional “fees” from at least one of his clients—for which Siegmeister solicited bribes from O’Steen.

Regarding the extortion charges, O’Steen solicited Siegmeister to resolve a case against one of his clients through pre-trial intervention (“PTI”). O’Steen demanded $60,000 from that client in order to procure the PTI agreement from the State Attorney’s Office. O’Steen and Siegmeister then coordinated to withhold the finalization of the PTI agreement until the client paid $60,000 in cash to O’Steen. In connection with this case, Siegmeister solicited O’Steen to purchase a bull from a herd of livestock he owned for $4,000, and to make a political contribution.

Additionally, O’Steen is charged with failing to file within 15 days the required Form 8300 with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network to acknowledge his receipt of more than $10,000 in cash from the client.

Siegmeister is separately charged with conspiracy to commit federal program bribery and federal program bribery in connection with another prosecution by the State Attorney’s Office for the Third Judicial Circuit. According to the indictment, Ernest Maloney Page, IV, was a defense attorney representing a client charged with two Driving Under the Influence (“DUI”) offenses.  The client’s family owned a tractor dealership. In or around September 2017, Siegmeister informed Page that he would favorably resolve one of the client’s DUI charges in exchange for a $10,000 discount on a tractor Siegmeister wanted to buy from the client’s dealership, and favorably resolve both DUI charges in exchange for a $20,000 discount. Ultimately, Siegmeister and his wife purchased a tractor and accessories from the client’s dealership, the price of which Page’s client discounted by approximately $20,000.  In exchange, Siegmeister dismissed the DUI charges and Page’s client pleaded guilty to charges of reckless driving with alcohol and refusal to submit to a blood alcohol test. On August 20, 2020, Page pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit federal program bribery for his role in facilitating this transaction. 

Siegmeister is also charged with wire fraud in connection with his legal guardianship of an elderly individual who lived in Columbia County. According to the indictment, from approximately January 2010 through April 2016, Siegmeister engaged in a scheme to defraud his ward and his ward’s estate by, among other things, transferring the victim’s assets for his own benefit, filing materially false documents with the court to conceal those transfers, and by creating a Last Will and Testament for the victim which designated Siegmeister’s relative as the sole beneficiary of the victim’s estate. 

Siegmeister is also charged with filing false tax returns for tax years 2015, 2016, and 2017.

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 and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation.  It will be prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kelly S. Karase and David B. Mesrobian.

Penalties Chart

Counts

Maximum Penalty

One

5 years’ imprisonment

Two/Three

20 years’ imprisonment

Four (O’Steen)

5 years’ imprisonment

Five (Siegmeister)

5 years’ imprisonment

Six (Siegmeister)

10 years’ imprisonment

Seven/Eight/Nine

(Siegmeister)

20 years’ imprisonment

Ten/Eleven/Twelve

(Siegmeister)

3 years’ imprisonment

 

Tampa, Florida – United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces the return of an indictment charging Rugh James Cline (40, Tampa) with five counts of engaging in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign place and one count of possessing child exploitation materials. If convicted, Cline faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison for each count of engaging in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign place and up to 20 years’ imprisonment for possessing child pornography. Cline will be deported to the United States after he completes serving his prison sentence in Cambodia on local charges.

According to the

indictment , in February 2019 and May 2019, Cline, a United States citizen and Florida-licensed attorney, traveled to Cambodia. While in Cambodia, Cline paid to sexually abuse four different minors. The indictment also charges Cline with traveling to Cambodia while possessing materials depicting the sexual abuse of children.

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

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the U.S. Department of State and the Cambodian National Police. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Frank Murray.

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.

Orlando, Florida – United States District Judge Paul G. Byron has sentenced George Poulo (27, Orlando) to 170 years in federal prison for using a minor to produce sexually explicit conduct and distributing child pornography. Poulo was also ordered to serve a lifetime term of supervised release and register as a sex offender. Poulo had been found guilty following a bench trial on September 30, 2020.    

According to evidence presented at trial, Poulo interacted with undercover law enforcement officers while using the Kik social media application. On Kik, Poulo discussed sexually abusing a 5-year-old girl whom he knew and also discussed a desire to have sex with other children. During these chats, Poulo sent the undercover officers five photographs of the minor watching him masturbate. Later, Poulo also sent the law enforcement officers a video of an adult male sexually abusing a young child. 

At sentencing, the court found that Poulo had engaged in a pattern of sexual abuse involving the minor child from the summer of 2019 until February 2020, when the FBI executed a search warrant at his home.

“No amount of prison time can erase what this monster did to a young, innocent child.”, said Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Tampa Division Michael McPherson. “The 170-year prison sentence handed down in this case proves the seriousness of law enforcement’s commitment and conviction to finding these predators and removing them from society so they can’t hurt another child again.”       

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the Winnebago County (Wisconsin) Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Shawn P. Napier.  

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

Ocala, Florida – A federal jury has found Xavier Sims (36, Ocala) guilty of possessing a firearm and ammunition as a convicted felon. He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 21, 2021.

According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, in February 2020, deputies from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office responded to a shooting at a residence. The victim and her three children had been sleeping when multiple gunshots hit their home. Sims, the victim’s ex-boyfriend, had threatened to “shoot up” her house earlier that day during an argument. Following the shooting, deputies observed Sims’s vehicle near the scene—he was the driver and sole occupant. During a search of the vehicle, deputies recovered a Glock .40 caliber pistol in the trunk along with 10 spent .40 caliber shell casings and 20 live rounds. Subsequent forensic analysis confirmed that the casings and a bullet fragment found at the scene of the shooting matched the firearm from Sims’s vehicle. DNA analysis also confirmed the presence of Sims’s DNA on the live .40 caliber rounds. Sims, a multi-convicted felon, is prohibited from possessing firearms and ammunition under federal law.

This case was investigated by the Marion County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Tyrie K. Boyer and Michael P. Felicetta.

This case is part of Project Guardian, the Department of Justice’s signature initiative to reduce gun violence and enforce federal firearms laws. Initiated by the Attorney General in the fall of 2019, Project Guardian draws upon the Department’s past successful programs to reduce gun violence and enhances coordination of federal, state, local, and tribal authorities in investigating and prosecuting gun crimes. For more information on Project Guardian visit www.justice.gov/projectguardian.

Jacksonville, Florida – U.S. District Judge Brian J. Davis today sentenced Hugo Cruz-Medina (33, Jacksonville) to three years and five months in federal prison for conspiring to commit mail and wire fraud, conspiring to defraud the United States, and illegally reentering the United States after previously being deported. As part of his sentence, the court also ordered Cruz-Medina to pay his victims $3,266,506.33 in restitution and a money judgment of $1,408,712.08 was entered, the proceeds of the mail and wire fraud conspiracy.

Cruz-Medina had pleaded guilty on September 29, 2020. 

According to court documents, Cruz-Medina acting with others, operated a construction contracting business in Jacksonville that partially paid workers “off the books.” By compensating employees with a mix of checks and cash, he and his co-conspirators avoided withholding the full amount of payroll taxes owed to the United States. This practice lead to a loss to the U.S. Treasury of approximately $1,857,794.25. Further, by underreporting the number of hours his laborers worked, Cruz-Medina defrauded his company’s workers’ compensation insurer and payroll management vendors, all of which relied on his false reporting to calculate the cost of their services and the amounts that they charged. This false reporting caused an additional loss of $1,408,712.08 to the insurer and the payroll companies.

Cruz-Medina is a citizen of Mexico and was previously deported from the United States in 2012. He later illegally reentered the country without the consent of the Attorney General or the Secretary of Homeland Security. 

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, U.S. Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, and the Florida Department of Financial Services. It was being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Michael J. Coolican.

Orlando, Florida – U.S. District Judge Paul G. Byron has sentenced David John Ridling (58, Vero Beach) to 15 years in federal prison for devising and executing a fraud scheme that resulted in the loss of more than $40 million. Ridling had pleaded guilty on October 20, 2020. 

According to court documents, Ridling is a farmer. Over the course of three years, Ridling attempted to defraud five financial institutions, one financial services provider, and one local Orlando business out of over $50 million. Ridling’s scheme involved the use of false brokerage account statements, fabricated tax returns, and false financial statements to obtain loans and lines of credit. 

As part of his scheme, Ridling falsely claimed that three individuals were his account representatives at a financial brokerage company and set up fake email accounts for two of those individuals without their consent or knowledge.  Assuming the identities of those two individuals, Ridling sent emails from the fake email accounts in an effort to convince lenders that he had millions of dollars in his two brokerage accounts. In fact, Ridling only had one brokerage account, which never had more than $2,000 in it. During the last year of Ridling’s scheme, he was able to obtain three loans totaling more than $25 million, based in part on his claim that his brokerage accounts had millions of dollars. During that timeframe, Ridling’s brokerage account had less than $2.00.

In total, Ridling was successful in receiving over $40 million in proceeds from his scheme, and he attempted to receive another $15 million from another victim.  Ridling used some of the proceeds that he obtained from his victims to pay amounts that he owed to other victims, prolonging his scheme.

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

Jacksonville, Florida – United States District Judge Marcia Morales Howard has sentenced Earl Frederic Owens (33, Jacksonville) to eight years and nine  months in federal prison for distributing child sex abuse images using the Kik social media application. Owens was also ordered to serve a 10-year term of supervised release, register as a sex offender, and pay $3,000 in restitution to a child victim. Owens has been in custody since his arrest on November 19, 2019.

Owens had pleaded guilty on November 17, 2020. 

According to evidence and court documents, the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Cyber Crimes Center received a report from Kik, a social messaging app, that several different user accounts had uploaded images depicting the sexual exploitation of children using the Kik app. Further investigation revealed that these materials were distributed online from an apartment in Jacksonville, where Owens lived.

On November 19, 2019, HSI agents executed a search warrant at Owens’s apartment. During an interview with agents, Owens admitted that he uses the Kik app to chat with strangers about his “urges,” he has an interest in “pedophilia,” and that he traded child sex abuse materials with others online using the Kik app. A forensic examination of Owens’s computer devices revealed that Owens had collected at least 2,149 images and 23 videos depicting young children being sexually abused. Online chat conversations were recovered from Owens’s smart phone showing that he had offered to pay an individual for nude pictures of underage girls. Several stories authored by Owens were recovered in which he had described, in graphic detail, the sexual assault and molestation of young children.   

“The exploitation of innocent children has no place in our communities and we will vigorously pursue prosecution of anyone involved in the production, distribution, or possession of child pornography to the fullest extent of the law,” said HSI Jacksonville Assistant Special Agent in Charge K. Jim Phillips. “This case highlights how important the law enforcement partnerships between HSI Jacksonville, the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, and the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office are in order to protect our children.”

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, and the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.

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