A Florida man was arrested after he was involved in a traffic accident and identified as the suspect involved in a case regarding a police officer’s stolen IRS refund check.
At the beginning of the summer, a police officer was awaiting the direct deposit of his IRS refund. He reported that it never showed up in his bank account, and he contacted the IRS about the situation. He was informed that they had mailed his refund instead of issuing it through direct deposit. The officer said he did not receive it, and they told him their records indicated it had already been cashed.
An investigation was opened, and the $20,694 check was traced to a local SoFi Bank. When the financial institution checked their records, they tracked down the check in an account that was opened in July 2023. They also reportedly discovered there were multiple transactions involving cashed United States Treasury checks that appeared to have been made out in the name of the account holder. They learned that money was taken out using ATMs, and several purchases of money orders were tracked to a few different Publix markets. The police checked the surveillance recordings from the stores, and they believed the suspect was a 34-year-old man from Coral Springs. An arrest warrant was activated.
On January 7, police were at the scene of a traffic accident, and they identified the passenger in one of the vehicles as the suspect they were looking for.
The man was taken into custody and booked into the Broward County Main Jail. He is facing preliminary charges of fraudulent use of an ID of another without consent over $5000, two counts of grand theft over $750 and under $5000, one count of grand theft over $20,000 and under $100,000, and one count of fraudulent money laundering transaction over $20,000 and under $100,000. He was held in lieu of a $57,500 bond. It was ordered that he is required to surrender his passport when he is released.
If you or someone you love is suspected of a theft offense, contact Orange County criminal defense lawyer Staycie R. Sena at (949) 477-8088 for a consultation now.