Four men were arrested in Broward on Monday after they plotted to cash a nearly $28 million U.S. Treasury check but unknowingly included an undercover agent in their scheme, according to federal court records.
Federal agents converged on Carlos Manuel Villanueva, 37, Eric Renard Bedford, 44, Jorge Cruz Garcia, 30, and John Ryan Boxie shortly after they exchanged the stolen check at a Pembroke Pines restaurant on Monday, according to a criminal complaint. All four face one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and one count of theft of government property.
Villaneuva lives in Hialeah, while the other three men are from Texas.
Carlos Manuel Villanueva, of Hialeah, is charged with attempting to cash a stolen government check for over $27 million. (Broward Sheriff’s Office/Courtesy)
Earlier this month, a “source of information” told the government that Villaneuva had access to a U.S. Treasury check for close to $28 million, according to the criminal complaint.
The check had been issued to a company as a tax refund but had not been cashed.
On Nov. 5, Villaneuva began talking to a person known as a “Banker” who he thought could help him cash the check, but who was in fact an undercover officer with the U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, according to the complaint.
Villaneuva sent the officer photos and videos of the check, saying that it was in the possession of the other three men, who lived outside of Florida but could travel to Florida to meet with the officer. He said he needed help cashing it because the company was “closed” and the check was set to expire on Nov. 12.
On Monday, Villaneuva, Bedford, Garcia and Boxie met with the undercover officer a little before noon at the Pembroke Pines restaurant. Garcia “claimed to have extensive experience in negotiating stolen checks, particularly United States Treasury checks,” and “mentioned that he operates a business that is used to funnel the proceeds from these stolen checks,” the complaint states.
The men discussed opening multiple accounts and moving $300,000 to $400,000 per day into the accounts to avoid scrutiny, according to the complaint. After they agreed on their plan, Boxie signaled to Bedford, who left the restaurant, went to Boxie’s Maserati, and returned with a white envelope with the check inside, which he gave to the undercover officer.
As soon as he transferred the check, officers who were “monitoring the meeting” converged on the four men and arrested them, according to the complaint.
The four men had their first appearances in Fort Lauderdale federal court Wednesday. A judge set bond at $100,000 with a Nebbia hold for Garcia, Bedford and Boxie and $50,000 with a Nebbia hold for Villanueva. A Nebbia hold requires that defendants prove the money they post for bond comes from verified non-criminal sources in order to be released.
Villanueva, Garcia, and Bedford remained in Broward Main Jail Thursday on a U.S. Marshal’s Service hold, according to jail records. Boxie did not appear in Broward jail records.
Attorneys for Villaneuva and Garcia did not return requests for comment Thursday. Bedford and Boxie did not have attorneys listed.
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