Page 35 - Florida Sentinel 5-12-17

Crime
Man Pleads Guilty To Getting $166,745 In Tax Fraud Scam
Man Gets 4 Years For Role In Social Security Checks Theft
Last week, a 56-year-old Clearwater man pleaded guilty to the theft of govern- ment funds. A sentencing date has not been set.
Craig Reckley is facing a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison.
According to court docu- ments, Reckley fraudulently obtained $166,745.61 from il- legal tax refunds from the In- ternal Revenue Service. Officials launched their inves- tigation into Reckley in 2015 while he was the owner of a pawn shop in Clearwater.
The investigation revealed that he had deposited 37 checks into his pawn shop bank account between Febru- ary 2012 and May 2013. Fed- eral agents began investigating Reckley in 2015.
CRAIG RECKLEY
A federal Grand Jury in- dictment stated that Reckley met Sylvester Banks in January 2012, and offered to provide him with checks for deposit into the Bible Church of God, Inc., account. Banks controlled the account.
In return, Banks retained a small portion of the de-
SYLVESTER BANKS
posited checks and gave the majority of the cash to Reck- ley, officials said.
Banks, 58, pleaded guilty in June 2015, and was sen- tenced to serve two years and three months in prison. The Court also entered a money judgment of $755,900 against him.
A judge sentenced a Tampa man to four years and four months in prison for his role in a Social Security checks theft ring. As part of his sentence, the Court also entered a money judgment in the amount of $589,876.40.
U. S. District Judge Steven Merryday also or- dered 38-year-old Darius Vashon Tolbert, to pay $151,971.80 in restitution to the Social Security Administration.
Tolbert was found guilty by a federal jury on August 11, 2016. He was convicted for re- ceiving stolen government property and for possession of stolen mail.
According to evidence pre- sented at trial, Tolbert pur- chased approximately $569,000 of stolen Social Secu- rity checks between April and July of 2012. The checks were made payable to 400 disabled or retired beneficiaries who live
DARIUS VASHON TOLBERT
in Pinellas County. The checks had been stolen from the St. Pe- tersburg Processing and Distri- bution Center by a mail handler.
Officials said Tolbert was part of a larger ring responsible for the theft of more than $3 million in stolen checks by the same mail handler.
The checks Tolbert pur- chased were later cashed at a money services business in Live Oak.
USF Football Player Charged With Second Sex Crime
On Wednesday, a member of the University of South Florida football team surren- dered to police. He was charged with sexual battery for the second time in less than two weeks.
According to a spokesman for the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, 22-year-old LaDarrius Divonta Jack- son was charged with sexual battery and false imprison- ment. The incident reportedly took place on March 27th, more than a month before the al- leged incident took place on May 1st.
The victim told police that Jackson was visiting the woman at her residence. She was putting items in her bath- room when Jackson entered the bathroom and asked her to shower with him several times.
The victim reportedly told police that when she at- tempted to leave the bath- room, Jackson blocked the door. She told police she re- mained clothed and agreed to wash her hair in an attempt to appease Jackson.
Jackson is alleged to have grabbed her and began force- fully removing her clothing. She allegedly told Jackson “no” several times, but he re-
LADARRIUS JACKSON ... Accused again of sexual battery
fused to stop and committed sexual battery against her.
The victim further told po- lice that Jackson then had her to drive to a nearby phar- macy to obtain an emergency contraceptive and ordered her to take it in his presence. He then made her drive him to his residence, where she dropped him off.
He was released from jail after posting a bond of $9,500, jail records showed.
Jackson was arrested on May 1st after a woman reported he had sexually battered her on the campus of the University of South Florida.
In that case, USF Police
Captain Mike Klingebiel,
said Jackson was taken into custody at the Tampa Interna- tional Airport that Monday night. Captain Klingebiel said Jackson was en route home to Birmingham, Ala- bama because the semester had ended.
Captain Klingebiel said at approximately 3 p.m., on May 1st, officers responded to the Holly Drive Apartments in reference to a sexual assault. The victim told police, the inci- dent took place at 2:30 p.m., that afternoon.
The victim told police that Jackson forced her into her room, where the alleged attack took place. After the alleged at- tack, she reported the incident to university housing staff, who assisted her in contacting police.
Police said the victim and Jackson are acquaintances.
Jackson transferred to USF from Hinds Community College, in Jackson, Missis- sippi. A junior, he plays defen- sive end on the school’s football team. He was sus- pended from team activities after his first arrest.
Jackson was initially held without bond. When he ap- peared for first appearance be- fore Hillsborough County Judge Margaret Taylor, she set his bond at the maxi- mum of $102,000.
However, she recused her- self from the case amid contro- versy. His bond was later reduced to $9,500, which he posted and was released.
Uncle Sandy says...
You don't choose 4, 9, 14, 29 your family. 30, 35, 40, 41 They are God's gift to you, 22, 25, 50, 51 as you are to them. 5, 10, 60, 61
Man Arrested For Sexual Battery On 14-Year-Old
Police have arrested a 20-year-old man and charged him with sexual battery on a minor. He was arrested on Tuesday for an incident that took place on April 13, 2017.
According to the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, the female victim told detectives that they were at a private residence in Safety Harbor when the alleged incident took place.
The incident was reported to police on April 28th,
when the 14-year-0ld girl told an adult about it. She reportedly told detectives she was at a friend’s house where she fell asleep in a chair.
When she awoke, Erik Clark was in the act of having inappropri- ate sexual contact with her. The victim said she attempted to resist Clark, but was not successful.
Investigators said the victim and Clark know each other. Clark was charged with one count of sexual battery.
ERIK R. CLARK
FRIDAY, MAY 12, 2017 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 23-A