Source: United States Department of Justice
Tampa, Florida – Lonnie Washington (25, Gainesville) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge John L. Badalamenti to 5 years and 10 months in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a convicted felon. Washington pleaded guilty on April 28, 2026. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Ocala, Florida – Benjamin Omar Pearson, IV (31, Wildwood) and Cordell Brown (39, Belleview) have been charged by federal indictment with distribution and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Pearson is charged with five counts, and Brown is charged with seven counts. Each faces an enhanced minimum penalty of 25 years, up to life, in federal prison on each of the counts due to each having two or more qualifying prior convictions for serious drug felony offenses. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Ocala, Florida – Michelle Forsythe (62, Ocala) has pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated identity theft and one count of wire fraud. She faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison for the wire fraud offense and a minimum sentence of two years for the aggravated identity theft offense. United States Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Fort Myers, Florida – Frederick Kutchinsky (54, North Fort Myers) has been sentenced by U.S. District Judge Kyle C. Dudek to five years and three months in federal prison possessing firearms as a convicted felon. Kutchinsky pleaded guilty on February 25, 2026. The court also ordered Kutchinsky to forfeit the firearms and ammunition possessed during the offense. U.S Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Jacksonville, Florida – Candia V. Williams, a/k/a “Wisdom Shield El,” has been charged by indictment with one count of conspiring to submit false claims and three counts of submitting false claims to the United States government. If convicted on all counts, Williams faces a maximum penalty of 25 years in federal prison. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe made the announcement.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Earlier today, in federal court in Central Islip, Dwayne Murray, also known as “Wayno,” a leader in the Almighty Gorilla Stone Nation set of the Bloods street gang (GSB), pleaded guilty to racketeering charges in connection with his participation in the June 12, 2020 murder of Wayne Cherry, as well as conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, and conspiracy to murder rival gang members. The proceeding was held before United States Magistrate Judge Steven L. Tiscione. When sentenced, Murray faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment and up to life in prison.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
A former City of Sweetwater commissioner was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for fraudulently obtaining nearly $950,000 in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans by submitting falsified payroll records, fabricated tax documents, and other fraudulent submissions to lenders administering pandemic-relief funds.
Source: United States Department of Justice
A former City of Sweetwater commissioner was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for fraudulently obtaining nearly $950,000 in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans by submitting falsified payroll records, fabricated tax documents, and other fraudulent submissions to lenders administering pandemic-relief funds.
Source: United States Department of Justice
United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jamie McDonald, Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), James C. Barnacle, Jr., and Commissioner of the New York City Police Department (“NYPD”), Jessica S. Tisch, announced that LUIGI NICHOLAS MANGIONE pled guilty today before U.S. District Judge Margaret M. Garnett in connection with the December 4, 2024, murder of UnitedHealthcare Chief Executive Officer Brian Thompson in Midtown Manhattan.
Source: United States Department of Justice Criminal Division
Todd Burkhalter, the founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Georgia-based financial advisory group Drive Planning LLC (“Drive Planning”), was sentenced today to serve 20 years in federal prison, the maximum allowed by law, for orchestrating a years-long Ponzi scheme that resulted in thousands of investors losing nearly $400 million. Two other top executives of Drive Planning, David Bradford and Julie Edwards, were sentenced to federal prison earlier this week for their roles in the scheme.