Florida law enforcement officials express concern about scams on seniors, but offer few details
Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister in Tampa on June 2, 2025. (Photo by Mitch Perry/ Florida Phoenix)
A host of top law enforcement officers briefed reporters in Tampa on Monday about their concerns about senior citizens in Florida being scammed by prisoners — alhough they offered few details.
They did say that the culprits exploiting older Florida residents are state prisoners whose weapons in these cases are contraband phones, cryptocurrency, and drone devices.
According to Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister, a 92-year-old man has been robbed of more $800,000 over a two-year period and one of the perpetrators is an incarcerated individual. He added that more information would come later.
'We will have formal charges, but it got to the point where we started connecting the dots and realized we need to put the public on notice that a lot of these calls and outreach to seniors, it could very much be a scam,' said Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier.
Florida Department of Corrections Secretary Ricky Dixon announced that in conjunction with the attorney general's office and other agencies, 'Operation Triple Threat' took place last week in three correction facilities containing approximately 3,000 inmates to search for illegal cellphones.
All told, he said, officers captured 400 phones. He did not name the prisons. Nor did the Department of Corrections respond immediately to an inquiry.
When asked asked how many cases involve prison inmates taking financial advantage of seniors, Uthmeier said 'at least three known cases,' although he added that no formal charges have been brought to date.
'We're still expanding to see how far it goes, but at least a few different perpetrators and likely several more than that as far as victims,' he said.
Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey and Florida Department of Law Enforcement Commissioner Mark Glass also appeared at the media availability.
SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Yahoo
SD prison task force narrows focus to specific sites
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — The evolving story of where a replacement for the South Dakota State Penitentiary could go appears to have some clarity. Structure damage, split trees left behind after storm Project Prison Reset's task force voted Tuesday in support of building a 1,500-1,700-bed facility or facilities at a maximum cost of $600 million. And as far as where to build, the stated preferences are at existing state Department of Corrections facilities or proposed sites in the Mitchell or Worthing areas. A bill to appropriate money to build a new men's prison for a guaranteed maximum price of $825 million had already failed in Pierre in 2025, and the weight of that figure is still felt. 'Just a few months ago, we were asked as legislators to pass $825 million for this project, and we said 'no,' in essence,' Republican Rep. Greg Jamison of Sioux Falls said Tuesday at the task force's meeting in Pierre. Republican Rep. Scott Odenbach of the Spearfish area, alongside Jamison, sits on the task force. The group, launched by Gov. Larry Rhoden following the legislative failure, has already unanimously voted in support of replacing the state penitentiary. Now, they are looking at where… and how. Odenbach made the motion to support building for 1,500-1,700 beds at no more than $600 million. 'That $600 million number is maybe more likely to be palatable to a two-thirds majority of the legislature, and we have to consider that,' Odenbach said. 'So, that's why I've done it that way.' That proposal eventually earned unanimous support among the task force. Both the Worthing- and Mitchell-area sites are near an interstate and relatively close to Sioux Falls. 'I think it's good to provide some direction and criteria that meets what is affordable for South Dakota and for what the people of South Dakota expect from us,' Republican Sen. Chris Karr of Sioux Falls said. 'There's what's ideal, and then there's the reality of what we can afford. I think this is a good starting point. In this motion, it says that the office of the state engineer and their contractors shall develop options.' 'This allows us to at least get that information,' Republican Rep. Jon Hansen of the Dell Rapids area said. 'What's possible within the budget parameters that we're setting now, and then we can get that information and make our decision from there.' And options are all they are right now. No plans were finalized Tuesday night in Pierre, and there will be no shovels digging into dirt on Wednesday. And while a possible path forward has come into focus, the mood among the task force is not totally enthusiastic. 'I'm going to support this motion today because I do think we owe ourselves these answers,' Democratic Rep. Erin Healy of Sioux Falls said. 'I'm nervous about what we're going to find.' 'Yes, I'll support it,' Democratic Sen. Jamie Smith of Sioux Falls said. 'But it's hard to support spending that much money when there's other things I know that we could do that keep people out of prison.' The task force's next meeting is scheduled for July 8. Eventually, the plan is for a special session of the state legislature to learn about the group's recommendations. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Washington Post
17 hours ago
- Washington Post
Arkansas authorities release photo rendering of 'Devil in the Ozarks' as manhunt continues
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Arkansas authorities on Tuesday released a photo rendering of a convicted murderer and former police chief known as the 'Devil in the Ozarks ' as the search for the escaped inmate entered its second week. The new image was released as state legislators raised concerns about Hardin's escape and said they planned to conduct a review of how it occurred. The Arkansas Department of Corrections said the photo rendering of Grant Hardin, 56, depicts how he may look after he escaped May 25 from the Calico Rock prison. The rendering shows Hardin with some hair on his head and face. Authorities have said Hardin escaped by donning an outfit designed to look like a law enforcement uniform. Rand Champion, a department spokesperson, said officials are focusing their search on the north-central Arkansas region where the prison is located. Tips from elsewhere about potential Hardin sightings have come in, but so far none have panned out, Champion said. Hardin, a former police chief in the small town of Gateway near the Arkansas-Missouri border, was serving lengthy sentences for murder and rape . He was the subject of the TV documentary 'Devil in the Ozarks.' Hardin was housed in a maximum-security wing of the primarily medium security prison, formally known as the North Central Unit. Officials are investigating whether a job Hardin held in the kitchen aided in his escape, including whether it gave him access to materials he could have used to fashion his makeshift uniform. The co-chairs of a legislative subcommittee overseeing the prison system told the head of the state Board of Corrections that they planned to conduct a review of any 'inadequacies or deviations' from security protocols that allowed Hardin to escape. Area legislators have raised questions about why Hardin was being held at the Calico Rock facility. The letter was sent Monday by Republican Rep. Howard Beaty and Sen. Matt McKee to Benny Magness, who heads the state board. 'Given Hardin's background as a former law enforcement officer and his history of working for multiple law enforcement agencies, it is evident that he possesses knowledge and skills that enabled him to exploit weaknesses in our security protocols,' the lawmakers wrote. 'His manipulation of the system by wearing a disguise resembling a uniform is disturbing and speaks to a broader system failure.'
Associated Press
18 hours ago
- Associated Press
Arkansas authorities release photo rendering of 'Devil in the Ozarks' as manhunt continues
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — Arkansas authorities on Tuesday released a photo rendering of a convicted murderer and former police chief known as the 'Devil in the Ozarks " as the search for the escaped inmate entered its second week. The Arkansas Department of Corrections said the photo rendering of Grant Hardin, 56, depicts how he may look after he escaped May 25 from the Calico Rock prison. The rendering shows Hardin with some hair on his head and face. Authorities have said Hardin escaped by donning an outfit designed to look like a law enforcement uniform. Rand Champion, a department spokesperson, said officials are focusing their search on the north-central Arkansas region where the prison is located. Tips from elsewhere about potential Hardin sightings have come in, but so far none have panned out, Champion said. Hardin, a former police chief in the small town of Gateway near the Arkansas-Missouri border, was serving lengthy sentences for murder and rape. He was the subject of the TV documentary 'Devil in the Ozarks.' Hardin was housed in a maximum-security wing of the primarily medium security prison, formally known as the North Central Unit. Officials are investigating whether a job Hardin held in the kitchen aided in his escape, including whether it gave him access to materials he could have used to fashion his makeshift uniform.
