The owner of an Altamonte Mall jewelry store has been arrested on federal charges after his business was raided Wednesday as part of a nationwide sweep on synthetic drugs. According to a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration official, the jewelry store owner allegedly oversaw a large synthetic drug operation in Central…
Two fired Broward Sheriff’s deputies surrendered at the federal courthouse Monday where they faced charges alleging they abused their power as law enforcement agents in order to assist Ponzi schemer Scott Rothstein and his allies. Prosecutors filed federal conspiracy charges against a former 48-year-old lieutenant from Boca Raton and a…
A Gainesville doctor who was under federal investigation for years has been charged with 210 counts of health care fraud and money laundering. The 57-year-old is accused of submitting fraudulent claims for needless tests, buying drugs from outside the U.S. that are not permitted for use here and providing those…
On Friday, a federal judge sentenced a south Florida doctor to more than six years in prison for her involvement in writing prescriptions for thousands of painkillers to addicts and drug dealers. She was convicted of money laundering. In July of 2013 a jury acquitted the 43-year-old woman and a…
A Bunnell police officer was arrested last week after the Florida Department of Law Enforcement accused him of soliciting teenage boys online. The 30-year-old Palm Coast man was arrested Mar. 25 on two counts of computer pornography and child exploitation, and one count of criminal use of personal identification information. The FDLE said they…
A West Palm Beach woman faces federal charges of identity theft and tax fraud after she allegedly stole personal information from more than 700 people. The 39-year-old woman is accused of stealing personal information and storing it in a notebook that included names, dates of birth and Social Security numbers,…
The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services arrested three people on Friday in connection with alleged illegal telemarketing operations in central Florida. According to the agency, an investigation into three companies following a series of consumer complaints revealed the businesses were operating illegally. The owners of the three telemarking…
A Florida man plead guilty in early 2014 to attempting to defraud Medicare of more than $28 million after buying several rehabilitation clinics, including one in Venice. The U.S. Department of Justice claims the man bought up the clinics so he could gain access to the clinics’ Medicare provider numbers.…
A four-day child predator investigation in Pinellas County that involved local, state and federal investigators resulted in 35 arrests. The sting, dubbed “Operation Home Alone,” targeted people seeking minors online for sexual relations. The suspects, ranging between 19 and 65 years of age, are from Pinellas, Hillsborough, Pasco and Manatee…
A 63-year-old man was sentenced to six years in federal prison last week for bank fraud, mail fraud, and wire fraud. The man pleaded guilty to the above charges on March 14, 2013. Court records indicate that the man was president and director of a realty company in southwest Florida.…