Preliminary Order of Forfeiture — United States v. Diamond Blue Smith (Southern District of Florida)

Summary

A Preliminary Order of Forfeiture in United States of America v. Diamond Blue Smith, Case No. 21-CR-20001-COOKE, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida, entered on the docket October 25, 2021 as Document 44. It recites that an Information filed January 5, 2021 charged conspiracy to commit wire fraud under 18 U.S.C. § 371, and that the Court accepted the guilty plea on August 4, 2021. Citing the Factual Proffer, it states that the defendant conspired with James Stote, Phillip J. Augustin and others to submit fraudulent PPP loan applications for Throwbackjerseys.com, LLC and Blue Star Records, LLC. The order notes the Ferrari named in the Information was administratively forfeited, enters a forfeiture money judgment of $1,134,782.00 and states it is final as to the Defendant.

Summary drafted by a model from the document's text below and checked by script against that text before publication. It is a navigation aid, not a reading of what the document proves. Where AI is used

Full text

Case 1:21-cr-20001-JEM Document 44 Entered on FLSD Docket 10/25/2021 Page 1 of 3




                             UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
                             SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA

                                 CASE NO. 21-CR-20001-COOKE


      UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

      v.

      DIAMOND BLUE SMITH,

                   Defendant.


                           PRELIMINARY ORDER OF FORFEITURE

           THIS MATTER is before the Court upon motion of the United States of America (the

  “United States”) for entry of a Preliminary Order of Forfeiture (“Motion”) against Defendant

  Diamond Blue Smith (the “Defendant”). The Court has considered the Motion, is otherwise

  advised in the premises, and finds as follows:

           On January 5, 2021, the United States filed an Information charging the Defendant with

  conspiracy to commit wire fraud in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371. Information, ECF No. 15. The

  Information also contained forfeiture allegations, which alleged that upon conviction of a violation

  of 18 U.S.C. § 371, the Defendant shall forfeit any property constituting, or derived from, any

  proceeds the defendant obtained, directly or indirectly, as a result of such offense pursuant to 18

  U.S.C. § 982(a)(2)(A). See id. at 7. The Information alleged that the property subject to forfeiture

  as a result of the alleged offense includes, but is not limited to: a 2010 black Ferrari 458 Italia,

  bearing vehicle identification number ZFF67NFA0A0175340 (the “Ferrari”).1          See id. at 15.




  1
   The Ferrari was administratively forfeited by the Internal Revenue Service on February 3, 2021.
  See Exhibit A (Declaration of Administrative Forfeiture). Therefore, the United States is no longer
  seeking judicial forfeiture of the Ferrari.
Case 1:21-cr-20001-JEM Document 44 Entered on FLSD Docket 10/25/2021 Page 2 of 3




         On August 4, 2021, the Court accepted the Defendant’s guilty plea to the Information. See

  Minute Entry, ECF No. 31; Plea Agreement ¶ 1, ECF No. 37. As part of the guilty plea, the

  Defendant agreed to a forfeiture money judgment in the amount of $1,134,782.00, which

  represents the value of the property subject to forfeiture. Plea Agreement ¶ 13.

         In support of the guilty plea, the Defendant executed a Factual Proffer, and the Court found

  that there was a factual basis to support the Defendant’s conviction. See Factual Proffer, ECF No.

  36. The Factual Proffer also provided a basis for the forfeiture of property. See id.

         According to the Defendant’s Factual Proffer, from in or around May 2020 until in or

  around at least August 2020, the Defendant knowingly and willfully conspired with James Stote,

  Phillip J. Augustin, and others to submit fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) loan

  applications. Factual Proffer at 1, ECF No. 36. In furtherance of the conspiracy, the Defendant

  caused the submission of two fraudulent PPP loans on behalf of his companies,

  Throwbackjerseys.com, LLC (“Throwbackjerseys.com”) and Blue Star Records, LLC (“Blue Star

  Records”). See id. at 2.

         As a result of the false representations on the Throwbackjerseys.com PPP loan application,

  on or about May 20, 2020, Bank 1 wired approximately $426,717.00 in loan proceeds to the

  Throwbackjerseys.com bank account, which the Defendant controlled. See id. at 4. As a result of

  the false representations on the Blue Star Records PPP loan application, on or about May 26, 2020,

  Bank 1 wired approximately $708,065.00 in loan proceeds to the Blue Star Records bank account,

  which the Defendant controlled. See id. at 5.

         After receiving approximately $1,134,782.00 in total PPP loan proceeds, the Defendant

  spent the funds on himself and others, including purchasing luxury items, such as the Ferrari. See

  id. at 5-6. The Defendant also paid approximately $250,000.00 to Stote and Augustin as kickbacks




                                                   2
Case 1:21-cr-20001-JEM Document 44 Entered on FLSD Docket 10/25/2021 Page 3 of 3




  for their assistance in preparing and submitting the PPP loans. See id. at 6.

          Based on the record in this case, the total value of the proceeds traceable to the offense of

  conviction is $1,134,782.00, which sum may be sought as a forfeiture money judgment pursuant

  to Rule 32.2 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure.

          Accordingly, based on the foregoing, the evidence in the record, and for good cause shown,

  the Motion is GRANTED, and it is hereby ORDERED that:

          1.     Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 982(a)(2)(A) and Rule 32.2 of the Federal Rules of

  Criminal Procedure, a forfeiture money judgment in the amount of $1,134,782.00 is hereby entered

  against the Defendant.

          2.     The United States is authorized to conduct any discovery that might be necessary

  to identify, locate, or dispose of forfeited property, and to resolve any third-party petition, pursuant

  to Rule 32.2(b)(3), (c)(1)(B) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure and 21 U.S.C. § 853(m).

          3.     Pursuant to Rule 32.2(b)(4) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, this Order

  is final as to the Defendant.

          4.     The Court shall retain jurisdiction in this matter for the purpose of enforcing this

  Order, and pursuant to Rule 32.2(e)(1) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, shall amend

  this Order, or enter other orders as necessary, to forfeit additional specific property when

  identified.

          DONE AND ORDERED in Miami, Florida, this 25th day of October 2021.




                                                     3


File and source

File

44-order-on-motion-for-forfeiture-of-property-bond.pdf

Size

129,521 bytes

SHA-256

8ce13ae46fe9f4e1973b206533755d2bf4e1f86b09e574a5b3beb2e998e56de9

Our copy

44-order-on-motion-for-forfeiture-of-property-bond.pdf

Original

No public link identified.