Florida Criminal Defense Blog | Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group

Sarasota Man Facing Charges Of Trafficking In Bath Salts

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Aug 27, 2018 | Drug Charges

A Sarasota man was arrested last week after local police say he was in possession of a variety of illegal drugs including a substance popularly known as bath salts.Sarasota County authorities say law enforcement attempted to initiate a stop of Michael Joshua Peterson on July 17 for riding his bicycle in the wrong direction on the street, but he allegedly dismounted the bicycle he was riding, dropped his backpack, and fled.Police engaged in a brief foot pursuit, ultimately employing a taser to gain compliance and effect a custodial arrest. They returned to the scene where the pursuit began...

OFAC Lists Four Burmese Individuals And Two Military Units Allegedly Involved In Ethnic Cleansing

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Aug 23, 2018 | OFAC

The Federal government announced sanctions last week against four Burmese individuals and two Burmese military units for allegedly conducting serious human rights abuses, including ethnic cleansing, across several states in Burma.The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) listed Burmese nationals Aung Kyaw Zaw, Khin Maung Soe, Khin Hlaing, and Thura San Lwin, and Burmese military units 33rd Light Infantry Division (LID) and the 99th LID under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act of 2016 for alleged atrocities committed in the Burmese states...

BUI Charge Dropped Against HCSO Deputy, But Internal Investigation Continues

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Aug 20, 2018 | Criminal Charges

Though the BUI charges against him are no longer pending, a Hillsborough County Sheriff's deputy may still find himself jobless due to an incident in Tampa Bay.On July 1 a Sheriff's Office marine patrol deputy spotted the pontoon boat piloted by Alexander Paul Craver near Apollo Beach and initiated a stop. The arrest report says that the deputy engaged the lights on his boat to let Craver know to pull over, but he allegedly did not stop at first. Per the deputy, Craver and a female passenger traded places while underway, and she ultimately slowed the boat for a stop.According to the...

New Port Richey Man Facing Murder Charges After Missing Woman’s Body Allegedly Found In His Apartment

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Aug 15, 2018 | Criminal Charges

A missing woman's remains found in a New Port Richey man's apartment has resulted in murder charges against him.The family of Christine Nelson reported her to the authorities as missing on August 5, but her vehicle was soon found in front of the apartment of Roy Toro. Only yards away from her own dwelling, Toro's apartment immediately became an area of intense scrutiny by police at that point.According to police, a perusal of the yard turned up blood on a curtain covering the apartment's back window. Coupled with a cell phone search that placed Nelson's phone in the immediate vicinity,...

Tampa Woman Charged With DUI Manslaughter After Fatal January Wreck

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Aug 13, 2018 | Dui

A Tampa woman is facing DUI manslaughter charges after a January wreck that killed one and seriously injuring a second.Temple Terrace police say Camaren Hailey Edson was driving her Nissan Murano northbound on Morris Bridge Road at around 1 A.M. on January 24 when she lost control of the vehicle while attempting to negotiate a curve.Veering first into onto the shoulder, they say Edson overcorrected and ended up on the wrong side of the centerline, encountering the Ford Fusion piloted by Uniquea Hamilton, with Takenya James along as a passenger.Per investigators, the collision, which happened...

St. Pete Man Facing Felony Charges After Allegedly Selling Fake Cocaine

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Aug 8, 2018 | Criminal Charges

A St. Petersburg man is facing felony drug charges after deputies say he sold them a substance purported to be cocaine, but wasn't.Pinellas County deputies say Tomas L. Phillips offered to sell an undercover officer what he claimed was 19 grams of cocaine in January. The officer allegedly tendered Phillips $600 for the deal, obtaining a white, powdery substance in return.Investigators say the undercover officer returned the substance to the evidence team, who subsequently tested it to confirm it as being as advertised by Phillips. However, per the lab, the substance Phillips allegedly sold...

Thirteen Individuals And Firms Added To OFAC Restriction List Due To Allegations Of Aiding Syria’s Chemical Weapons Development

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Aug 3, 2018 | OFAC

Five organizations and 8 individuals were designated by the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to be added to the office's Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List in accordance with allegations by the international community of their participation in aiding the government of Syria's Scientific Studies and Research Center (SSRC) to develop chemical weapons.Amir Katrangi, Maher Katrangi, Houssam Katrangi, Mohamad Katrangi, Mireille Chahine, Zhou Yishan, Antoine Ajaka, and Anni Beurklian have all been added to OFAC's list, which means that...

Tampa Man With Mortgage Fraud Record Pleads Guilty To Charges Relating To Stolen Church Money

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Aug 2, 2018 | Criminal Charges

A Tampa man with a long history of mortgage fraud is again returning to long-term state custody after entering a plea of guilty to wire fraud.Investigators say Victor Thomas Clavizzao accepted over $16,000 from a church intending to use the funds to build a new worship building. However, rather than directing the money to a construction contractor, authorities say he spent the money for his own benefit.Clavizzao was on supervised release when he accepted the money from the Plant City church, with prior convictions for fraudulently obtaining over $6 million in mortgage loans. He was sentenced...

Tampa Man Faces Felony Murder Charges After Argument Allegedly Leads To Murder

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Jul 31, 2018 | Criminal Charges

A Tampa man who allegedly gunned down another individual in the street last week was apprehended after a cooperative effort between the Tampa Police Department and the U.S. Marshals Service.According to investigators, Sergio Rashad Green and Glennis Leon Mays became embroiled in an argument last Wednesday at dusk. Though authorities did not specify the nature of the argument the duo were arguing about, what is absolutely clear is that one party did not survive the argument.Per investigators, Mays produced a firearm and shot Green. The 27-year-old Green was attended to by emergency personnel,...

New York Medical Device Manufacturer Pays Justice Department $12.5 Million To Settle False Medicare And Medicade Claims Allegations

On Behalf of Brunvand, Wise & Farinella Law Group | Jul 27, 2018 | Government Fraud

A New York state medical device manufacturer has agreed to pay the federal government $12.5 million to settle claims made against it that it led medical providers to make false claims to Medicare, Medicaid, and other state-based health care programs. The Justice Department says AngioDynamics, Inc. led health care providers to make the erroneous claims in connection with the use of two medical devices marketed by the firm, namely LC Bead and the Perforator Vein Ablation Kit (PVAK). From the spring of 2006 to the winter of 2011, AngioDynamics allegedly marketed the LC Bead as a drug-delivery...