Latest news with #Bloy
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bookkeeper of iconic Florida Keys restaurant defrauded dead owner's estate: officials
A trusted employee over the estate of the deceased owner of an iconic Florida Keys restaurant was charged with defrauding the business in the years since he died. Susanne Bloy, 71, had been Mike Forster's bookkeeper since 1998. She was put in charge by a family member of Forster to manage his business, Mangrove Mike's Enterprises, when he died at 61 in September 2021. Monroe State Attorney's Office investigators say she swindled more than $50,000 using the company's debit cards. READ MORE: Mike Forster, former Islamorada mayor and popular Keys restaurateur, dies from COVID Forster died from complications of COVID-19, a cruel twist to his life as he was overseeing giant charitable operation that began in the days after the Keys were shut down during the pandemic. Through his restaurant, Mangrove Mike's in Islamorada, he mobilized an ambitious effort to feed the bartenders, servers, cooks, bussers and other service industry staff put out of work because of a blockade set up at the 18 Mile Stretch in an effort to stop the spread of COVID in the archipelago. What began locally grew to a larger endeavor of creating a nonprofit to feed those in need up and down the 120-mile island chain, which was starved of its lifeblood tourism. 'This case deeply impacts the Upper Keys,' Monroe County State Attorney Dennis Ward said in a statement. 'Mike Forster dedicated his life to public service and generosity. During the darkest days of COVID, his restaurant kept people fed and connected. To discover that someone he trusted is accused of stealing from his legacy is absolutely unacceptable.' According to prosecutors, Forster's niece, who took over the restaurant, began noticing recurring charges earlier this year that had no connection to the operations of the business. Senior Investigator Roy Bogue found that from February 2022 through September 2023, Bloy used company debit cards to make repeated purchases through a casino gaming app, said State Attorney's Office spokesman Steven Torrence. The app was linked to Apple identifications and devices controlled by Bloy, Torrence said. 'Thanks to a subpoena issued to First State Bank and records obtained from Apple and Yahoo, investigators were able to verify that Bloy was responsible for hundreds of in-app purchases charged to the Mangrove Enterprises business account,' Torrence said. Bogue obtained a search warrant and found Bloy updated the Apple ID account, changed the billing information to her name and then tried to delete the account in the days before the business was transferred to the new owner, Torrence said. 'When someone uses their access and authority to exploit the memory and estate of a community icon, we will hold them accountable,' Chief Assistant State Attorney Joseph Mansfield said in a statement. Monroe County Sheriff's Office deputies arrested Bloy Saturday on scheming to defraud, which is a first-degree felony. She was released later in the day after posting a $50,000 bond. She could not be reached for comment. Information on her legal representation was not immediately available. In addition to owning Mangrove Mike's, Forster Forster was a Monroe County commissioner at the time of his death. He also served five terms on the Islamorada Village Council, and was mayor twice. 'This is about protecting the legacy of someone who gave so much to our community,' Ward said. 'We owe it to Mike's family — and to every family in the Keys — to pursue justice with integrity and resolve.'
Miami Herald
21-05-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
Bookkeeper of iconic Florida Keys restaurant defrauded dead owner's estate: officials
A trusted employee over the estate of the deceased owner of an iconic Florida Keys restaurant was charged with defrauding the business in the years since he died. Susanne Bloy, 71, had been Mike Forster's bookkeeper since 1998. She was put in charge by a family member of Forster to manage his business, Mangrove Mike's Enterprises, when he died at 61 in September 2021. Monroe State Attorney's Office investigators say she swindled more than $50,000 using the company's debit cards. READ MORE: Mike Forster, former Islamorada mayor and popular Keys restaurateur, dies from COVID Forster died from complications of COVID-19, a cruel twist to his life as he was overseeing giant charitable operation that began in the days after the Keys were shut down during the pandemic. Through his restaurant, Mangrove Mike's in Islamorada, he mobilized an ambitious effort to feed the bartenders, servers, cooks, bussers and other service industry staff put out of work because of a blockade set up at the 18 Mile Stretch in an effort to stop the spread of COVID in the archipelago. What began locally grew to a larger endeavor of creating a nonprofit to feed those in need up and down the 120-mile island chain, which was starved of its lifeblood tourism. 'This case deeply impacts the Upper Keys,' Monroe County State Attorney Dennis Ward said in a statement. 'Mike Forster dedicated his life to public service and generosity. During the darkest days of COVID, his restaurant kept people fed and connected. To discover that someone he trusted is accused of stealing from his legacy is absolutely unacceptable.' Recurring Apple charges? According to prosecutors, Forster's niece, who took over the restaurant, began noticing recurring charges earlier this year that had no connection to the operations of the business. Senior Investigator Roy Bogue found that from February 2022 through September 2023, Bloy used company debit cards to make repeated purchases through a casino gaming app, said State Attorney's Office spokesman Steven Torrence. The app was linked to Apple identifications and devices controlled by Bloy, Torrence said. 'Thanks to a subpoena issued to First State Bank and records obtained from Apple and Yahoo, investigators were able to verify that Bloy was responsible for hundreds of in-app purchases charged to the Mangrove Enterprises business account,' Torrence said. Bogue obtained a search warrant and found Bloy updated the Apple ID account, changed the billing information to her name and then tried to delete the account in the days before the business was transferred to the new owner, Torrence said. 'When someone uses their access and authority to exploit the memory and estate of a community icon, we will hold them accountable,' Chief Assistant State Attorney Joseph Mansfield said in a statement. Monroe County Sheriff's Office deputies arrested Bloy Saturday on scheming to defraud, which is a first-degree felony. She was released later in the day after posting a $50,000 bond. She could not be reached for comment. Information on her legal representation was not immediately available. In addition to owning Mangrove Mike's, Forster Forster was a Monroe County commissioner at the time of his death. He also served five terms on the Islamorada Village Council, and was mayor twice. 'This is about protecting the legacy of someone who gave so much to our community,' Ward said. 'We owe it to Mike's family — and to every family in the Keys — to pursue justice with integrity and resolve.'
TimesLIVE
20-05-2025
- Politics
- TimesLIVE
Sanef condemns threats to journalists who work professionally and ethically
The South African National Editors Forum (Sanef) has condemned actions of a Durban businessman who recently threatened a Sunday Times journalist who had called him for comment. Siqu Zungu allegedly threatened Sunday Times senior journalist Isaac Mahlangu when he was called for a comment for an article about him leaving a R12m penthouse owned by a Johannesburg doctor, Blaine Bloy, in which he lived rent-free for about three years before he was recently evicted. Zungu said the journalist should ensure that he gets bodyguards after writing the article about him. The businessman was evicted from a luxury Umhlanga penthouse, which he left with extensive damage, including a broken bathtub, cracked tiles and outstanding rent of more than R1m. When contacted for comment last week, he accused the publication of targeting him and said the journalist should get bodyguards. 'I am asking you to have bodyguards. Do you hear me? I am not joking. It is not a threat ... Ask Bloy who I am, he will tell you. Put out that article, but tell your company to give you bodyguards. 'You've targeted me. I will handle this myself. Maybe Bloy has not told you who I am. Maybe they have not told [you] what kind of life I live ... It's not your job to target a person like this,' he said. Slindile Khanyile, chair of the Sanef media freedom subcommittee said the organisation did not threats to journalists lightly, especially in a country where the work that journalists do and media freedom is protected by the constitution. 'So, we condemn the actions of not only this particular newsmaker, but anyone who makes it difficult for journalists to conduct their work,' she said. She added that Zungu was contacted for comment, which is one of the most important principles of journalism — to give newsmakers the opportunity to tell their side of the story and a fair opportunity to respond to allegations before a story is published. 'When journalists do that, which is something that is required by media ethics as well as the press code, and they then encounter newsmakers who make it difficult for them to do their work, it is unfortunate,' she added. She said journalists should always do the right thing even when reporting on threatening and aggressive people. 'Regardless of how a newsmaker may behave, journalists must always do the right thing by giving people the right to reply and being fair and be balanced in their reporting,' she said. The Sunday Times has reported the matter at the Hillbrow police station.
