CLEARWATER, Fla. — Bluewater Media CEO Andrew Latimer calls his Pinellas-based production company a “classic American success story.”

For the last 25 years, Bluewater Media has been serving clients across the country, producing out of its Clearwater studios cutting-edge commercials, series, shows and everything in between. But what happened recently with some embezzlement and money laundering allegations was a first. 

“That was a surprise and kind of shocking to us all,” Latimer said. “Deep betrayal from someone we trusted. 

Latimer, who sat down for his first in-person interview since 10 Investigates broke news that Bluewater’s former CFO had been charged with multiple counts of money laundering, said Jeffery Crane abused his position as protector and manager of company funds. 

In February, prosecutors charged Crane with two counts of money laundering, scheming to defraud and criminal use of personal identification information. 

Court records accuse him of using company credit cards and editing expense reports to cover his actions, like paying for “high-end restaurants, hotels, flights, limousine services and adult entertainment establishments.” 

“The first response is, what the hell? Like, come on, what’s, what’s going on here? And as we dig deeper and deeper and you look at it, he was using false limo services to fraudulently get his necessary party favors,” Latimer said. “He was buying expensive things for his wife. And then hiding all of that in the credit card reports…”

RELATED: Former executive accused of stealing millions arraigned in Pinellas County court

The court complaint also accuses him of using more than $1.2 million from Bluewater accounts to pay credit card bills for Atlanta-based AAA Parking — another company he’s accused of stealing from. Court records say he was working for both companies at the same time. 

“As we communicated back and forth, CEO to CEO, we’re like, what are you seeing?” Latimer explained. “And we saw the same pattern across credit card fraud, hiding of manipulating accounts receivable to hide what he was doing on the expense side of it, falsified cash flow documents, all the pieces that would be a nightmare across the board.”

A spokesperson for AAA Parking, which is a subsidiary of real estate company Selig Enterprises, told us the company fired Crane after finding alleged credit card fraud last fall. The company says it is cooperating with law enforcement.

“We want him in jail for the rest of his life,” Latimer said. “I mean, he’s facing one charge that’s a 30-year felony. The second one’s a 15-year felony. I don’t want to see him get out of jail ever.”

10 Investigates’ camera was the only one in Pinellas County court during Crane’s arraignment, where a judge entered a not guilty plea because Crane did not have an attorney at the time. After the hearing, Crane ran away from 10 Investigates after we asked questions about the charges against him. 

But Latimer says he can’t run away forever. During a visit to his studio, he pointed out the county jail in the distance. 

“Our CFO, who stole from us, is gonna end up back in there. Eventually, he’s gonna go upstate. But right now, for him to be locked up in that jail right there means a lot to our employees. It matters. He stole from us. He stole from them,” Latimer said. “Don’t let this moment be the memory of who Bluewater is, because Bluewater is way more than Jeff Crane. Twenty-five years is not made easily. Twenty-five years is made by hard work, determination, building hope and opportunity. That’s what we’re going to continue to do here.”

Crane’s next court date is April 6, when he is set for a pre-trial hearing.

Emerald Morrow is an investigative reporter with 10 Tampa Bay News. Like her on Facebook and follow her on X. You can also email her at emorrow@10tampabay.com.