The Official South Florida Discussion Thread

[Scientific Playa]

it's hard outchea on a hustler


North Miami man convicted of cashing $11 million in tax-refund checks for dead people

North Miami man convicted of cashing $11 million in tax-refund checks for dead people

Miami Herald File
BY JAY WEAVER

His North Miami business cashed more than 2,000 tax refund checks issued in the names of people who were dead or disabled.

The refunds added up to more than $11 million, courtesy of the Internal Revenue Service.

Now, Junior Jean Baptiste faces up to 20 years in prison at his sentencing in October after being convicted Tuesday by a Miami federal jury of money laundering, theft of government funds, stealing identities and possessing false driver's licenses. His crime, though commonplace in Miami during the past decade, stands out for the sheer volume of stolen identities and fraudulent checks.

Baptiste, 36, who operated a check-cashing store called Surveillance Masters, regularly took a fee of half the value of the checks. They ranged from $1,000 to $9,000 each.

Trial evidence showed that Baptiste used the ill-gotten check-cashing fees to buy a cargo ship, multiple vehicles and the rights to an album of a hip-hop artist.

He also made false identification documents for his files as part of the scheme, which lasted from 2009 to 2011, according to prosecutors Michael Berger and Michael Nadler. They presented trial evidence showing that Baptiste possessed more than 900 false driver's licenses, work permits and green cards.

IRS criminal investigators made the case against Baptiste, who was convicted for offenses typical of the early wave of ID theft and tax-refund fraud. In recent years, however, hundreds of offenders have been using stolen IDs to file fabricated tax returns electronically. The IRS then issues their refunds downloaded onto prepaid debit cards.

While the IRS has stepped up efforts to slow down the flow of fraudulent refunds, Miami remains the nation’s capital of such crimes.

North Miami Check Casher Convicted at Trial for Cashing Over $11 Million in Fraudulent Tax Refund Checks

61 Defendants Charged in Fraud Schemes Involving Tens of Thousands of Stolen Personal Identities

 

[mannyrs13]

crafty scammers had a long run...

Thousands of fraudulent cards, crystal meth found in SW Miami-Dade home

Thousands of fraudulent cards, crystal meth found in SW Miami-Dade home

SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) - A father and son were arrested overnight after a tip led police to a fake credit card and gift card scheme inside of a Southwest Miami-Dade home.

Miami-Dade Police got a search warrant and entered a home located along the 3600 block of Southwest 149th Place, where they found thousands of fraudulent debit, credit and gift cards, guns, laptops and crystal meth. “You could say we found well over 2,000 gift cards, thousands of counterfeit credit cards, and several laptops,” said MDP Detective Marcos Rodriguez.

According to officials, the father and son duo easily stole over $50,000 from unsuspecting victims by draining their bank accounts and obtaining personal information.

The father has been identified as 56-year-old Luis Perez and the son as 32-year-old Jose Luis Perez. Both men are facing over 50 counts of credit card fraud and forgery.

“We’ve lived next to them for 17 years, and they’ve always been quiet,” said one neighbor. “I mean, we know our neighbors on this side, but they’ve really been standoffish all those years.”

Investigators said the duo also made a lot of money by stealing gift cards right off the shelves of stores like Publix and Kohl’s. “The information of the card, the number of the gift card and they would store it in their computer,” said Rodriguez. “They would later get the gift card, return it back to the rack of whatever store they stole it from. Periodically, they would go online, check the numbers that they had as far as the gift cards they had stolen and see if these gift cards were now loaded with money. Once they found that these gift cards were loaded with money they would then redeem the cards by encoding other gift cards with these credit card numbers and either selling them on the streets or using themselves for purchases.”

Some of the items the men purchased with the stolen gift cards were later sold on websites like eBay, said police.

Miami-Dade Police called the bust one of the biggest of its kind. “This is one of the largest busts we’ve come across lately, especially the gift card aspect of it,” said Rodriguez.

Officials advise the public to always check for any tampering before purchasing gift cards.

That's crazy. I didn't know they could just steal the gift card and copy the numbers then put it back on the shelf. It's so easy to conceal a gift card also. Has no type of security tag and is small enough to fit in your pocket. Those credit card type of gift cards aren't worth much to retailers either. Most of the fee goes to the credit card company. I don't have the numbers, but I should look next time. I wouldn't be surprised if our profit on each gift card is a quarter or less. Gotta be careful when buying gift cards of any kind. Too much scams going around.

 

[Thierry Henry]

^ yea the scam game is ridiculous over here. We are the fraud capital of the USA. I almost got finessed out of $700 a few months ago, but thankfully my bank noticed the unusual transactions and reimbursed me all the money. I had to wait on a new debit card and throw out the one I had. Ever since then I make sure I always have cash on me, but no more than $30.

 

[Jax]

^ yea the scam game is ridiculous over here. We are the fraud capital of the USA. I almost got finessed out of $700 a few months ago, but thankfully my bank noticed the unusual transactions and reimbursed me all the money. I had to wait on a new debit card and throw out the one I had. Ever since then I make sure I always have cash on me, but no more than $30.

How you got finessed? What happened?

 

[mannyrs13]

^ yea the scam game is ridiculous over here. We are the fraud capital of the USA. I almost got finessed out of $700 a few months ago, but thankfully my bank noticed the unusual transactions and reimbursed me all the money. I had to wait on a new debit card and throw out the one I had. Ever since then I make sure I always have cash on me, but no more than $30.

Yeah I went thru an issue with a credit card and ebay fraud but luckily i was protected. Still that inconvenience and lack of peace of mind lingers. Good thing the banks are on top of things and noticed your issue. Always gotta be on top of your accounts these days.

 

[newworldafro]

gentrification coming to overtown?


Developers want to build luxury condo — for cars, not people — in Overtown

Read more here: Breaking News, Sports, Weather & More | MiamiHerald.com & Miami Herald

Cotdamn......that's gentrification on a 100 thousand trillion. Where are blacks moving to in Overtown?

 

[Scientific Playa]

Cotdamn......that's gentrification on a 100 thousand trillion. Where are blacks moving to in Overtown?

i dunno, prolly down south to florida city and homestead, or up north to miami gardens and broward county.

 

[CodeBlaMeVi]

i dunno, prolly down south to florida city and homestead, or up north to miami gardens and broward county.

Miami Gardens halted all low-income development.

 

[Thierry Henry]

How you got finessed? What happened?

I used my debit card like 2 days before at wal mart. When I swiped the card, the machine took my info. Scammers went and made 2 different transactions that totaled about $700. My bank detected they were unusual in the amount spent and the places where they spent the money. They called me at 7am on a Saturday to inform me about the transactions. They pretty much know your spending habits, so they already knew it was fraud. They froze my account for a few days, reimbursed all the money and sent me a new card.

 

[Jax]

I used my debit card like 2 days before at wal mart. When I swiped the card, the machine took my info. Scammers went and made 2 different transactions that totaled about $700. My bank detected they were unusual in the amount spent and the places where they spent the money. They called me at 7am on a Saturday to inform me about the transactions. They pretty much know your spending habits, so they already knew it was fraud. They froze my account for a few days, reimbursed all the money and sent me a new card.

How would the scammers get your info though?

 

[Scientific Playa]

How would the scammers get your info though?

A skimmer made to be fitted to an Ingenico credit card terminal of the kind used at Walmart stores across the country. Image: Hold Security.


Credit card skimming information and prevention

Skimming occurs most frequently at retail outlets that process credit card payments -- particularly bars, restaurants and gas stations.

How skimming works
Skimmers are small devices that can scan and store credit card data from the magnetic stripe. Crooks can install skimmers on a gas pump, or corrupt employees can have a skimmer stashed out of sight of customers. Once the card is run through the skimmer, the data is recorded, and the crooks can sell the information through a contact or on the Internet, at which point counterfeit cards are made. The criminals go on a shopping spree with a cloned copy of the credit or debit card, and cardholders are unaware of the fraud until a statement arrives with purchases they did not make.






Skimmers Found at Walmart: A Closer Look — Krebs on Security
May 25, 2016 - Recent local news stories about credit card skimmers found in self-checkout ....


6 Ways To Protect Yourself From Card Skimmers | Bankrate.com

 

[Scientific Playa]

8 year old that was killed in Liberty city hit home brehs, I knew her and her family. The mothers of Jada and Zay is holding a rally in liberty city by central. If anyone wants more information, PM me

i remember your post.


September 5, 2016 9:44 PM

Hundreds at rally call on Jada Page’s killers to turn themselves in


Hundreds at rally call on Jada Page’s killers to turn themselves in

 

[Scientific Playa]

Miami commissioner wants millions from Wynwood mega-project for Overtown

By Andres Viglucci

aviglucci@miamiherald.com

Entrepreneur Moishe Mana, who wants to build one of the biggest development projects Miami has ever seen plumb in the heart of Wynwood’s burgeoning hipster district, made a complex deal earlier this year to win critical support from his fellow neighborhood property owners.

In a key concession, Mana pledged to pay $10 million into a new city-created Wynwood trust fund designed to blunt the impact of new development on the neighborhood’s small-scale charm. In exchange, Mana would get an OK to build a clutch of 24-story residential towers that significantly exceed the maximum height allowed by new zoning rules enacted just last year to protect the neighborhood’s character.

It seemed to work. After a year of negotiation and very public debate, leaders of the Wynwood Business Improvement District, a semi-autonomous public agency representing local property owners, voted to support Mana’s mega-plan despite misgivings about its scale, helping the developer win city commission approval in an initial vote earlier this summer.

Then Miami Commissioner Keon Hardemon stepped in, and everything seemed to change.

After closed-door meetings with Hardemon in which BID members were not included, Mana’s team emerged with a different explanation of the deal. The Mana team told flabbergasted BID members that they would still pay $10 million for the right to build tall, but that at Hardemon’s behest all but $2.5 million of the money would now go to benefit Overtown instead.

Now, on the cusp of a second and final commission vote on the Mana plan that’s set for Thursday, the carefully negotiated agreement between the developer and the BID is on the verge of unraveling over the money issue. After two public BID meetings last month with Mana’s team ended at a bitter loggerheads amid accusations that the developer had breached the agreement, the agency’s board of directors scheduled a vote for Wednesday to consider rescinding their support for the project, barring some last-minute settlement.

If they do so, it’s unclear how that might alter political support for Mana’s project. Commissioners typically defer to their colleagues in considering a proposal inside other commissioners’ districts, but Commissioner Ken Russell also represents a portion of Wynwood and could weigh in. So could other commissioners, since the project is so large, at 25 acres and 10 million square feet of construction, that it has citywide implications.

Hardemon, who represents a swath of Wynwood in addition to neighboring Overtown and who voted in favor of the Mana project at that first hearing, did not respond to requests for an interview relayed through an aide. The Miami Herald requested but did not receive documentation setting out how the money would be used in Overtown, or the justification for the shift.

Hardemon indicated at the June 23 first reading vote on the project that he would seek additional benefits for Overtown, including job and wage guarantees. He also alluded to additional “bonus” payments for allowing Mana to go above 24 stories that could be earmarked for affordable housing in Overtown.

A Mana spokesman pointed to the comment as indicating that Hardemon intended for some of the Wynwood impact money to go to Overtown. But nothing Hardemon said at that meeting suggested he meant to divert money intended for Wynwood, according to a transcript of the hearing.

Only after Mana’s team met with Hardemon subsequently — in a private meeting outside the public record — did the terms of the agreement change. New language in the development agreement with the city, inserted by the developers’ attorneys, shifted the money away from Wynwood — something BID members say they didn’t notice until they saw the documents on the eve of a scheduled second reading vote scheduled for July. Mana asked that vote be postponed after BID members balked.

Mana representatives argue the money shift changes nothing in the agreement substantially, because the developer is still on the hook for $10 million in public benefits payments, in addition to $35 million in promised street and infrastructure improvements in Wynwood itself — something they stress has not changed.

“The commissioner felt we’ve spent all this time talking with Wynwood, but not Overtown,” said Mana’s project architect, Bernard Zyscovich. “In order for him to feel comfortable, he wanted a portion of this money to go to his community, and not have it all go to Wynwood. He basically rearranged the buckets.

“We’re agnostic to where it goes.”

The fallout threatens to revive a split in Wynwood over the neighborhood’s future between Mana — its largest landowner — and scores of other property owners represented by the BID. Last year, the BID spearheaded creation of a special zoning district that limited new construction to eight to 12 stories to preserve the neighborhood’s low-scale charm. Mana applied for his mega-project approval after that, alarming neighbors over its potential impact on Wynwood and spurring negotiations with the BID to make it compatible with its surroundings.

BID leaders say it’s not just about the money.

They also complain that Mana has tried to alter other key pieces of the agreement, including a “phasing” element meant to permit the developer to build his lucrative towers only after completing substantial portions of the project’s centerpiece, a collection of cultural buildings surrounding a public green space on the eastern end of his holdings. The developer’s attorney, Iris Escarra, has publicly assured the BID that the developer is still obligated to abide by that portion of the agreement.

But the BID says the change in the allocation of the money raises issues of trust and principle.

BID member David Polinsky said in an interview the agency’s argument is not with Hardemon, but with Mana, who knew all along that he would have to satisfy the commissioner’s concerns over the impact of his project on Overtown separately.

“We don’t represent Overtown,” Polinsky said. “I warned them throughout this process that they needed to go back to Overtown and the commissioner. He has his prerogatives to set the process. At the end, the burden is on them to satisfy all the other parties.”

Polinsky argues that Mana can well afford to help both Wynwood and Overtown. The special area plan he is seeking approval for would increase the allowable development over the current zoning by 2.5 million square feet, Polinsky said, which given recent sales in Wynwood would realize the developer about $220 million over the value of what he could build today.

At a public meeting last week, Polinsky and other BID board members said they remain open to proposals that could shore up their support for the project. The BID’s co-chairman, Albert Garcia, met with Hardemon on Tuesday, but did not respond to a request for an interview through a spokeswoman.

Read more here: Miami commissioner wants millions from Wynwood mega-project for Overtown


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Needed now and in the next decade: Electricians, roofers, plumbers

Needed now and in the next decade: Electricians, roofers, plumbers

 

[Gifted one]

Brehs peep my podcast episode with Umi Selah (Executive Director of the Dream Defenders) and Aja Monet(renowned poet) as we discuss "Gentrified Dissonance" again, basically a follow up of what's been going on down here in South Florida and abroad.



@Tony_Bromo
@alpo

@Scientific Playa I was at the rally for Jada were you there too?
@mannyrs13

 

[Gifted one]

@954UAlreadyknow

@Tony_Bromo

@mannyrs13

@alpo

Check out this week's episode of Roots Radio