White Collar Crime

Published on: February 17, 2014

Orange County Criminal Defense Attorney :: Owners of 3 Central Florida Telemarketing Companies Arrested for Operating Illegally

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

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 companies were arrested.

One of the agencies operating out of Kissimmee is suspected of defrauding 12 people of more than $500,000. The 34-year-old owner was arrested and charged with several offenses, including grand theft and exploitation of an elderly person or disabled person. The man was booked into the Osceola County Jail.

A 30-year-old business owner was arrested and booked into the Orange County Jail. The FDACS claims this particular company was unlicensed to conduct commercial telephone sales. The business allegedly employed 12 unlicensed commercial telephone salespersons. The owner was charged with 12 counts of employing unlicensed commercial telephone salesperson and one count of commercial telephone solicitation without a telephone sales license, all of which are third-degree felonies.

The third person arrested, is a 48-year-old Sanford man who owns an Altamonte Springs company. Investigators claim that three unlicensed people were found working at his business. The man was charged with three counts of employing unlicensed commercial telephone salesperson and booked into the Seminole County Jail.

In an effort to prevent consumer fraud, law enforcement agents are constantly investigating telemarketing companies. The restrictions on telemarketing companies are quite strict and the laws are always changing, so if you are accused of telemarketing fraud of any kind you must act fast to protect your rights. Whether you are accused of operating a telemarketing scheme or are found to be in non-compliance with current laws and regulations, an Orange County Criminal Defense Attorney at Whittel & Melton can help you build a powerful defense for state or federal charges.

Published on: February 7, 2014

Clay County Criminal Defense Attorney :: Former Clay Schools Employee Charged with Racketeering

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

A former 53-year-old information technology specialist for the Clay County School District was arrested Tuesday after deputies allege he stole $19,000 worth of equipment from several schools and then sold the items online.

The Green Cove Springs man was arrested at his home Tuesday afternoon after detectives claim he stole computer and audio-visual equipment, including computer monitors, televisions, projectors and computer memory kits from several schools he worked for in the county, according to the Clay County Sheriff’s Office.

Officials claim the man later sold the items, worth about $19,000, on eBay over the course of several years. The man was employed with the school district for eight years before the district learned of his alleged activities.

A former Clay Schools employee was charged with Racketeering on Tuesday.

According to deputies, the man used the money he received from the sales to pay his bills and purchase items for his family.

He was charged with one felony count of racketeering. He remained in the Clay County jail Wednesday with bail set at $100,000.

Racketeering is also known as RICO – the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. Under Florida law, racketeering is classified as a first degree felony punishable by up to 30 years in prison. This is a complicated offense due to the many outlets the government can use to prove you are guilty of these charges. Any person accused of racketeering needs to act fast to protect their rights and safeguard their future. A Clay County Criminal Defense Attorney at Whittel & Melton can challenge any evidence brought by the government and mount a powerful defense against RICO charges.

Published on: January 15, 2014

Lee County Federal Criminal Defense Attorney :: Cape Coral Man Receives 6 Years in Prison for Bank and Investor Fraud

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

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. In June 1990, he apparently created a Trust Agreement for approximately 101 acres of unimproved land, in Cape Coral for which he was the trustee and also one of its beneficiaries, along with 52 named combined interest holders or beneficiaries. He mortgaged the trust property without the consent of the other beneficiaries by submitting fraudulently altered trust agreements to multiple banks that named him as the sole beneficiary.

The man also executed various loan documents, where he falsely claimed to be the sole beneficiary, giving him the authorization to mortgage the property. He received $2 million from Florida Community Bank in 2002 for the first mortgage loan. He then paid that loan off in 2006 with a mortgage loan exceeding $17 million from First National Bank of Pennsylvania. Court documents show that the man used most of the money from the second loan for personal use to fund other projects. He defaulted on the First National Bank of Pennsylvania mortgage loan, causing the bank to foreclose on the property in October 2009, leaving an unpaid principal balance of $17.03 million.

The beneficiaries of the 101 acres have yet to receive compensation for their initial payments as interest holders, yearly payments or for the increase in the value of the Trust property.

Bank fraud violations, along with other white collar crimes are harshly punished in the state of Florida and throughout the United States. Under federal statutes, a conviction for bank or mortgage fraud may carry up to $1 million in penalties and 30 years in federal prison. Attempting to commit bank fraud carries the same penalties as the actual crime itself.

Once a conviction is achieved in bank fraud cases, sentencing generally depends on the amount of money lost in the scheme. A Lee County Federal Criminal Defense Lawyer at Whittel & Melton can help those accused of bank fraud fight the severe ramifications of a bank fraud conviction.

Published on: January 13, 2014

Pinellas County Federal Criminal Defense Lawyer :: Largo Woman Receives Four Year Sentence for Tax and Student Loan Fraud

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

A 44-year-old Largo woman was sentenced to four years in federal prison on Thursday for defrauding student financial aid and filing false claims with the Internal Revenue Service. Additionally, the Court also ordered her to pay restitution to the IRS, in the amount of $110,971, and to the Federal Stafford Loan Program, in the amount of $22,350.

The woman pleaded guilty to the charges against her on October 10, 2013.
Court documents indicate that the woman had previously obtained several student loans with outstanding balances, then had the balances dismissed due to a disability. She apparently managed to procure additional student loans by submitting forged physician forms stating that her condition had improved, and agreeing to repay her past loan balances.

The woman then applied for further student loans to attend Walden University, which court documents show she did not attend. She received more than $27,000 in loans, from which a total of $22,350 was disbursed to her.

In connection with the IRS, the woman apparently established four fictitious Florida corporations and then filed corporate tax returns claiming more than $500,000 in refundable tax credits. She opened bank accounts in the names of the corporations, where the refunds were directly deposited.

According to reports, the woman used the refunded tax credits for personal expenses.
She admitted that these corporations were created just to file false corporate tax returns and were not legit businesses.

The Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Department of Education and the Office of Inspector General all investigated this case.

The Internal Revenue Service, or IRS, has seemingly unlimited resources at its disposal when it comes to investigating tax crimes. These investigations often start out as civil matters, but can quickly intensify to criminal matters based upon the evidence they obtain. Tax fraud can legally be defined as many different things, including reporting false income, not disclosing certain assets, reporting more deductions than you are actually owed and even changing personal expenses to be represented as business expenses.

Published on: December 30, 2013

Duval County Criminal Defense Lawyer :: Jacksonville Insurance Salesman Pleads Guilty to 15-Year Ponzi Scheme

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

A Jacksonville insurance salesman pleaded guilty to a 15-year scam in federal court Friday. Reports suggest that more than 50 people were bilked out of nearly $5 million.

Prosecutors claim that the investments the man promised large returns on were actually a Ponzi scheme that he used to buy commercial property, luxury cars and other items.

The 49-year-old man faces up to 80 years in prison, a fine of over $1 million as well as paying restitution to the victims involved in all 34 counts of the federal grand indictment.

Court records indicate that many of the victims were Duval County School Board employees who invested money from their Deferred Retirement Option Program, also known as DROP. There were also out of state investors in Georgia and North Carolina.

The man pleaded guilty to two counts of mail fraud, one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering. All other charges were dropped.

The man remains free pending a sentencing hearing, which has yet to be scheduled.

Court records claim the scheme started in 1996 when the man set up a shell corporation, Abaco Securities International, in the Turks and Caicos Islands, British West Indies, as a fake offshore investment company. The man was listed as the director of the company, but the only location was a post office. The man solicited his victims to invest their retirement savings in an investment product he described as ASI and promised interest rates sometimes exceeding 12 percent.

While some of the money was sent to a financial services company where the man had told his investors the retirement money would be invested, prosecutors claim the majority of the funds were deposited into SunTrust accounts set up by the man and then stolen by him. This apparently lasted until 2011.

A Ponzi scheme, also known as a business or investment pyramid, is defined as an investment plan where early investors are paid with the investments of later investors. While the plan may have started out legitimately, with everyone intention of delivering appropriate funds to investors, somewhere down the line the manager of the funds found that the investment strategy could not meet its goals, and in order to meet the demands of initial investors, used the money from later investors to pay early backers.

Due to the large sums of money involved in Ponzi schemes, these criminal cases are usually tried in federal court. They often include charges of mail fraud, wire fraud and money laundering. When Ponzi schemes are uncovered and a person faces criminal charges in federal court, it is not surprising to find out that law enforcement has been investigating them for months, possibly for a year or more.

Published on: December 13, 2013

Pinellas County Federal Criminal Defense Lawyer :: St. Pete Property Owner Facing Criminal Charges for Failing to Notify Tenants of Lead Paint

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

A 56-year-old St. Petersburg property owner was recently indicted on charges that he failed to make tenants aware of the dangers of lead paint in their apartments, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Tampa.

The Tierra Verde man has been charged with four counts of failing to provide approved Environmental Protection Agency lead paint warning notices and brochures to his tenants and two counts of alteration or falsification of records in a federal investigation.

Federal investigators became suspicious of the man after they allegedly found lead in the paint and soil at a property just west of Crescent Lake during a renovation in 2011.

The man apparently owns the property under his management corporations. According to federal EPA guidelines, the landlord must make sure tenants are aware of all possible dangers linked to lead paint before leasing.

According to the indictment, the man backdated disclosure forms when the EPA began investigating him in order to delay the investigation.

If convicted, the man could serve a maximum of one year in prison for each count of failing to provide a warning notice and up to 20 years for each count of falsification of records.

St. Petersburg officials claim the man is well known in the area because his nuisance issues have resulted in thousands of dollars in fines for various properties he owns.

Altering, deleting, destroying, erasing or modifying any business record with the intent to defraud can result in falsification of records charges. These charges are quite serious and can lead to jail time, fines and other penalties. If you are under investigation for or believe that you will be charged with alteration or falsification of records in a federal investigation, it is in your best interests to speak with a criminal defense lawyer as soon as possible.

Published on: November 12, 2013

Lee and Charlotte County Criminal Defense Lawyer :: Five Arrested in SWFL Clinic Fraud Sweep

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

Five people working at clinics in Fort Myers and Port Charlotte were arrested after police concluded an investigation into alleged false personal injury claims at these facilities.

The arrests included clinic owners, massage therapists and chiropractors who have been charged with patient brokering and solicitation in support of what police call a large school personal injury protection fraud ring.

The investigation was conducted by the Florida Department of Financial Services’ Division in partnership with Nationwide Insurance Company. It was apparently discovered that employees at rehab centers in Fort Myers and Port Charlotte were advising patients to sign documents for rehabilitation services for injuries that occurred during auto accidents.

The clinics are accused of billing insurance companies for treatments that apparently never occurred. The investigation allegedly uncovered that the Port Charlotte facility was operating without the proper license.

A 31-year-old receptionist, a 52-year-old massage therapist, a 51-year-old facilitator, a 51-year-odl clinic owner and a 63-year-old chiropractor were all taken into custody.

The department’s investigation was also led by the Lee and Charlotte County Sheriff’s offices. The suspects were booked into either the Charlotte County Jail or the Lee County Jail.

According to police, the suspects are awaiting bond. If convicted, they each face up to five years in prison.

There are many different types of insurance fraud or insurance crimes that a persona can be accused of. Essentially, insurance fraud is the crime of providing false information to an insurance company about a claim so that the company will agree to cover any costs related to losses or damages.

Published on: October 11, 2013

Lake and Citrus County Criminal Defense Lawyer :: Woman Accused of Posing as Nurse Charged with Slew of Crimes in Lake and Citrus County

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

A woman accused of pretending to be a nurse and treating patients at a Lake County home healthcare facility has been arrested and charged with running an unlicensed assisted living facility.

According to Lake County sheriff’s detectives, this is not the woman’s first run in with the law.

Before she allegedly duped a home health care facility into believing she was a licensed nurse in May, the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office arrested her in December for scheming to defraud and criminal use of personal information.

Records indicate that for the May charges, the woman was released on $2,000 bail.

Investigators claim that the woman went to the Lake County home health care facility to become an office manager in May, but during the interview she produced paperwork and documentation showing she was a licensed practical nurse.

The woman apparently made home visits to patients on several different occasions.

The woman was fired just weeks after she started her position, after an audit by the
Florida Department of Health and detective work by the Lake County Sheriff’s Office allegedly uncovered she was not licensed to practice in Florida. Moreover, detectives allege she made her own license.

She is accused of using another registered nurse’s license number for the state and placing her name on the license.

The nurse the woman is accused of impersonating works at Saint Petersburg General Hospital and shares an almost identical name with the woman.

Lake County sheriff’s investigators claim they are currently working to identify any additional patients in the community that may have been treated by the woman.

Just like doctors, attorneys, dentists, veterinarians and other professionals, anyone wishing to become nurse must first obtain a license. This is something the state of Florida requires, as well as all other states. Practicing nursing without a license is a serious crime that carries very harsh consequences, including incarceration, fines, probation and even restitution to any victims that suffered any harm.

Published on: October 10, 2013

Boca Raton lawyer receives 3-year sentence for obstruction, money laundering and witness tampering relating to Rothstein Ponzi scheme

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

Add another attorney to the collateral damage of Scott Rothstein’s $1.4 billion Ponzi scheme.

The Sun Sentinel is reporting that a Palm Beach County lawyer and former counsel to Kim Rothstein received a three-year prison sentence for plotting to help her conceal more than $1 million in jewelry she hid from federal authorities, as they seized her husband’s assets.
Charged conspiring to commit money laundering, obstruct justice and witness tampering, Rothstein’s attorney faced a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

After pleading guilty to these charges in January, the Boca Raton attorney was disbarred. His 36-month imprisonment will be followed by two years of supervised release. As part of his plea deal, the attorney agreed to forfeit $515,000 to federal authorities — including compensation he received for legal fees from Kim Rothstein, as well as four expensive pens and jeweled cuff links.

According to reports, the attorney’s lapse in judgment was a result of viewing Rothstein as a friend and not as a client. When pleading to the judge for a minimal sentence for her client, his attorney stated that “he saw this woman drowning and he tried to help her…she was losing everything in the world through no fault of her own. … He handled this horribly, and what he did was absolutely wrong.”

Published on: August 17, 2013

Jupiter man arrested on claims he tried to extort $25,000 from attorney

by Whittel & Melton, LLC

News reports are claiming that Stuart Police Department arrested a Jupiter man on charges that he tried to extort $25,000 from his attorney. He is being held in Martin County Jail.

The man, Michael Stuart Pomerantz, was arrested at the attorney’s office Friday, according to law enforcement.

The police spokesperson said that the attorney came to an agreement 2009 with Pomerantz and another person to buy property. Eventually, Pomerantz and the second person filed a lawsuit against the attorney, which resolved through the mediation process.

However in June of this year, Pomerantz allegedly told the attorney he would pursue criminal charges and alert the Florida Bar to the actions alleged in the 2009 lawsuit — unless the attorney agreed to give him $25,000.

Detectives conducted several controlled calls between the attorney and Pomerantz. In one, Pomerantz agreed to come to the attorney’s office on this past Friday to receive the money.

Audio and video surveillance equipment were set up to take the Friday meeting and it recorded Pomerantz allegedly telling the attorney: “You paid your debt. You owed me the money. We are even. You have my word.” Stuart Detectives arrested Pomerantz inside the attorney’s office.

Extortion, also known as blackmail, describes a threat made in order to take another person’s money or property, or to compel another person to act or not act. Extortion is a second degree felony in Florida. A conviction can result in term of imprisonment for up to fifteen years, a fine in an amount up to $10,000, or both.