Page 2 - Florida Sentinel 10-17-17

Features
Money Laundering Scam Gets Woman 40 Years In Prison
Last Friday, a federal judge sentenced a 52-year- old Texas resident to serve a prison sentence as well as other sanctions. She was con- victed during a jury trial of conspiracy to commit inter- national money laundering and conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud October 21, 2016.
The court also entered a money judgment in the amount of $9,288,241.36 and restitution in the amount of $3,767,196 against Ms. Priscilla Ann Ellis, of Killeen, Texas.
District Judge Steven Merryday also ordered Ms. Ellis to forfeiture of various assets, including her bank ac- counts, properties, and a lux- ury vehicle.
According to evidence presented at trial, Ms. Ellis, her attorney, Perry Don Cortese, and her daughter, Ms. Kenietta Rayshawn Johnson, were members of an international criminal or- ganization that defrauded dozens of victims across the United States and then laun- dered the funds, much of which were sent overseas.
The fraud schemes took several forms. Many victims were law firms solicited on- line to perform legal work, provided counterfeit cashier’s checks for deposit into the firms’ trust accounts, and then directed to wire money to third-party shell busi- nesses controlled by the con- spirators.
Others were title compa- nies defrauded in phony real estate transactions. Other victims were targeted and de- frauded by fake suitors on dating websites. The conspir- acy also employed hackers who compromised both indi- vidual and corporate e-mail accounts, ordering wire transfers from brokerage and business accounts to shell ac- counts controlled by conspir- ators.
The victims were in- structed to wire money into
MS. PRISCILLA ANN ELLIS
funnel accounts held by con- spirators, known as “money mules.” The funds were then quickly moved to other ac- counts in the United States and around the world before the victims could discover the fraud.
Bank records presented at trial indicate that, from 2012 to 2015, several million dol- lars’ worth of wires were re- ceived in such accounts to be laundered. Conspirators in Canada, Nigeria, South Korea, Senegal, and else- where helped coordinate the fraud and money laundering activity from abroad.
Ms. Ellis laundered sev- eral million dollars’ worth of
fraud proceeds through her bank accounts and other ac- counts under her control. She also arranged for the creation of high-quality forgeries of checks and other documents.
Cortese, a licensed attor- ney in Texas, worked for the conspirators by laundering victim money through his in- terest on lawyers trust ac- counts (“IOLTAs”). He also met with individuals in per- son to retrieve cash with- drawn from receiver accounts.
Cortese recruited his paralegal and others to open such accounts to launder funds. The evidence further showed that Ms. Johnson, then a bank employee at Cap- ital One, helped create coun- terfeit checks and monitor money flows between ac- counts controlled by conspir- ators.
On November 29, 2017, Ms. Ellis is scheduled to be sentenced in a related matter, in which a jury found her guilty of conspiracy to com- mit counterfeiting, using in- terstate commerce facilities in the commission of mur- der-for-hire, and retaliating against a witness.
Last Chance For High School Students To Apply For 2018 Disney Dreamers Academy
Applications for the once-in-a-lifetime inspirational pro- gram are open through Oct. 31 at www.DisneyDreamer- sAcademy.com.
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – High School students partici- pating in the 2018 Disney Dreamers Academy with Steve Harvey and Essence will experience a once-in-a-lifetime ca- reer-inspiring weekend – but there’s only a few weeks left for students to apply at DisneyDreamersAcademy.com. Applica- tions close on Oct. 31 for the innovative, outside-the-class- room, mentoring program that takes place in March at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida.
Applications are open to U. S. high school students, ages 13 to 19, through Oct. 31, 2017. A distinguished panel of leaders will evaluate the applications, and selected participants will be announced by early 2018.
For more information regarding applications, interested applicants can visit DisneyDreamersAcademy.com, or learn more about the program on Facebook.com/DisneyDreamer- sAcademy or Twitter.com/DreamersAcademy.
Tampa Woman Dies Suddenly After Brief Illness
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
A Tampa woman died suddenly last Monday follow- ing a brief illness. Ms. Va- lerie Crawford was 49-years-old.
Ms. Cheryl Guzman said Ms. Crawford had been ill recently, but was un- dergoing treatment. Last Monday, the two sisters were together talking and running errands. The sisters had planned to have dinner after they finished the errands.
They were in Dade City around 7 p.m., when Ms. Crawford complained about not being able to breathe. Ms. Guzman said she called 9-1-1, but they were not able to resuscitate her, she said.
A Tampa native, Ms. Crawford was the daughter of Ms. Jewel Burnette and J. D. Lewis. She attended the public schools of Hills- borough County and gradu- ated from Leto High School in 1986.
After graduation, Ms. Crawford entered the work- force. She had been em- ployed at Progressive Insurance Company for more
MS. VALERIE CRAWFORD 1/30/1968 --- 10/9/2017
than 15 years at the time of her death.
“She was just a loving and giving person. She loved doing things for people and was very gracious and giv- ing,” her sister said.
Of Baptist faith, Ms. Crawford enjoyed spending time with her family and watching the Washington Redskins, which was her fa- vorite football team, her sis- ter said.
In addition to her parents and sister, Ms. Crawford is survived by another sister, nieces, nephews, other family members and friends.
Ray Williams Funeral Home is in charge of han- dling arrangements.
PAGE 2 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY TUESDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2017