Court filing — No. 0:25-mj-06756 (Dkt. 1, S.D. Fla.)
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A criminal complaint (AO 91) with a supporting affidavit in United States v. Stevenson Charles, Yusuf Minor and Naod Yohannes, Case No. 25-mj-6756, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, entered on the docket December 23, 2025 (Doc. 1). The affidavit of Conor S. Goepel, a Special Agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, states that there is probable cause to believe the three committed Kidnapping, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 1201 and 2. It states that correctional officers in a county jail discovered that inmates had escaped, and it identifies the escaped inmates as Charles, Minor and Yohannes. It also describes law enforcement surveillance and a stop of a rideshare service vehicle, and an interview of the driver, referred to as the Victim.
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“Court filing — No. 0:25-mj-06756 (Dkt. 1, S.D. Fla.).”
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Case 0:25-mj-06756-AOV Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/23/2025 Page 1 of 8
UNITED STA TES D ISTRICT CO UR T
SO UTHER N DISTRICT OF FLO RIDA
CASE NO. 25-mj-6756-Va11e
UN IT ED STA TES O F A M ER IC A
V.
STEV EN SO N C H A R LES,Y U SU F M IN O R ,
A ND NA O D Y O H A N NE S,
D efendants.
/
CR IM INAT,CO VER SHEET
1. D id this m atter originate from a m atter pending in the CentralRegion of the United States
Attorney'sOfficepriortoOctober3,2019(Mag.JudgeJaredM.Strauss)?No.
2. D id this m atter involve the participation ofor consultation w ith M agistrate Judge Eduardo 1.
Sanchezduring histenureattheU .S.A ttorney'sOffce,which concluded on January 22,20232
N o.
3. D id this m atter involve the participation of or consultation w ith M agistrate Judge M arty
Fulgueira Elfenbein during her tenure at the U .S.A ttorney's Ofsce,w hich concluded on
M arch 5,2024? No.
4. D id this m atter involve the participation of or consultation with M agistrate Judge Ellen F.
D 'A ngelo during her tenure atthe U .S.Attorney's O ffice,which concluded on October 7,
2024?N o.
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j
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Respectfullysubmitted,
JASON A.REDING QUX ONES
UN ITED STATES ATTORN EY
By: /s/LindsevM aultasch
Lindsey M aultasch
A ssistantUnited StatesAttorney
CourtID N o.A5502705
99 N .E.4th Street
M iam i,FL 33132
(305)961-9115
Lindsey.Maultasch@usdojagov
Case 0:25-mj-06756-AOV Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/23/2025 Page 2 of 8
AO 91(Rev.11/ll) Cri
minalComplaint
U NITED STATES D ISTRICT C OURT
forthe
UnitedStatesofAmerica )
v. )
) CaseNo. 25-mj-6756-Valle
STEVENSON CHARLES, YUSUF MINOR, )
AND NAOD YOHANNES, )
) '
)
Defendantts)
CR IM IN AL C O M PLAIN T
1,thecomplainantin thiscase,state thatthe following istruetothe bestofmy knowledgeand belief.
Onoraboutthedatets)of December22y2025 inthecountyof Miami-DadeandBroward inthe
Southern Districtof Southern ,thedefendantts)violated:
CodeSection OfenseDescri
ption
18U.S.C.j1201 Kidnappi
ng
Thiscriminalcom plaintisbased on thesefacts:
SEE AU ACHED AFFIDAV IT.
V Continuedontheattachedsheet.
Complainant'
ssiv ature
ConorS.Goepel,SpecialAgent,FBI
Printed nameand title
Sworn tobeforeme and signed in my presence.
!
Date: / A h
Judge'
ssignature
city and state: Fod Lauderdale,Florida HonorableAl
icia 0.Valle,United StatesMagistrate
Printed ntwneandtitle
Case 0:25-mj-06756-AOV Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/23/2025 Page 3 of 8
AFFIDAW T IN SUPPO R T O F CR IM INA L CO M PLM NT
1,ConorS.Goepel,being firstduly sworn,hereby depose and state asfollows:
IN TR O DUC TIO N AN D A G ENT BA CK G RO UN D
1. 1am a SpecialAgentfortheFederalBureau oflnvestigation (GtFBl'')currently
assigned to the V iolentCrim esand Fugitive Task Force ofthe FB1'sM iam iDivision.lhave been
an FBlSpecialA gentsince Septem ber202 1and have been assigned to the M iamiD ivision since
February 2022.1am an investigative or law enforcem entofficerofthe U nited States w ithin the
meaning ofTitle 18,United StatesCode,Section 2510(7),in that1am empowered by law to
conductinvestigationsof,and to m akearrestsfor,federaloffenses.M y dutiesinvolve investigating
various violations of federaloffenses,including,butnot lim ited to,bank robberies,H obbs A ct
robberies,kidnapping,murderforhire,firearmsviolations,andcarjacking.
2. lam currently a m em berofthe South Florida V iolentCrim e Task Force.A spart
of m y professional duties and responsibilities, l have becom e fam iliar w ith the investigative
m ethodsand enforcem entofviolentcrim espertainingto stateand federallaw s.lhave also becom e
versed in m ethodologiesand practices em ployed by individuals and groupsw ho com m itviolent
crlm es.
'
3. 1 subm it this affidavit in support of a crim inal com plaint charging Stevenson
Charles(:SCHARLES'')>YusufMinor(ddM lNOR'')5 and Naod Yohannes(CCYOHANNES'')with
K idnapping,in violation ofTitle l8,United States Code,Sections 1201and 2.
4. The statements contained in this affidavit are based upon m y ow n personal
knowledge aswellasinform ation provided by otherindividuals,including otherlaw enforcement
oftk ials,and my review of records obtained during the course of this investigation.1have not
included in this affidaviteach and every factand circum stance known to m e,but only the facts
Case 0:25-mj-06756-AOV Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/23/2025 Page 4 of 8
and circum stances sufficient to establish probable cause for the issuance of the requested
com plaint.
PR O BA BLE CAU SE
5. O n oraboutD ecem ber22,2025,in the early m orning hours,the exacttim e being
unknown to law enforcem ent,correctionalofficersin the DeK alb County Jail,located in D ecatur,
G eorgia, discovered that three inm ates had escaped som etim e during the evening and early
m orning hours.The three inm ates w ere identified as CHA RLES, M INOR, and YO HAN NES
(collectivelyreferredtoasthetdlnmates''ortheir efendants'').Theidentitiesofthelnmateswere
dissem inated throughoutlaw enforcem entand later,the public.
6. Continuing on D ecem ber 22,2025, Deputies with the United States M arshals
Service CIUSM S'')notified FBIM iam i'sViolentCrime and Fugitive Task Force thatthe three
escaped inm ates m ay have done so by using a rideshare service vehicle.The U SM S provided the
m ake, m odel, license plate,and description of the vehicle that 1aw enforcem ent believed the
inmatestobetravellingin(theC'VICTIM VEHICLE'').Law enforcem entlearnedthattheVICTIM
V EH ICLE'Sdriver,hereinafterreferred to asthe ççvictim ,''w asunresponsiveto severalattempted
contacts.
7. Shortlythereafter,law enforcementlearnedthatlicenseplatereaders(ûtPRs'')in
Brow ard and M iam i-Dade County had hits for the V ICTIM VEHICLE. Law enforcem ent
responded to the area of the LPR hits and began conducting surveillance. W hile conducting
surveillance,law enforcem entreceived inform ation thatthe three escaped inm atesm ay be staying
atanearby short-term rentalresidencelocatedinMiramar,Florida(thekçrentalresidence'').Law
enforcem ent subsequently confirm ed that the V ictim 's credit card had been used to purchase a
i short-term rental.
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Case 0:25-mj-06756-AOV Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/23/2025 Page 5 of 8
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8. W hile conducting surveillance,1aw enforcem entobserved the VICTIM VEHICLE
being driven by asubjectmatchingCHARLES'description.Law enforcementalso observed a
passengerin theV ICTIM VEHICLE thatdid notappearto bethe V ictim ,w hom law enforcem ent
had determ ined w as the registered owner.Law enforcem ent continued to surveilthe V ICTIM
VEHICLE.
9. W hen itbecam e apparentto 1aw enforcem entthatthe occupants ofthe VICTIM
VEH ICLE were aw are of law enforcem ent'spresence,law enforcem entatlem pted to conducta
felony vehicle stop;however,the driver ofthe VICTIM VEHICLE attem pted to flee from law
enforcem ent.The VICTIM VEHICLE eventually cam e to a stop and the driverofthe VICTIM
VEHICLE bailed outof the VICTIM VEH ICLE and tled on foot.The driver of the VICTIM
VEH ICLE w asIateridentitsed asCHA RLES.A fterafootchase with law enforcem ent,CHA RLES
wasapprehended.The passenger,w how aslateridentifed asYOHAN NES,wasapprehendednear
the VICTIM VEH ICLE.Law enforcem ent located bank cards belonging to the Victim on both
CHARLES'and YO HAN NES'person atthe tim e oftheirarrest.Law enforcem entalso located a
loaded 9m m handgun along thepath thatCHA RLES ran ashe tled on foot.
l0. Law enforcement searched the VICTIM VEH ICLE based on the exigent
circum stances,butdid notlocate the Victim ,w ho rem ained unaccounted for.Law enforcement
w entback to the rentalresidence in an effortto locate theV ictim .Afterseveralattempted contacts
w ith the V ictim atthe rentalresidence,law enforcem entobserved and identitied thethird and fsnal
outstanding inm ate,M INOR,through an open window .Law enforcem entinstructed M IN OR to
exit the rental residence. How ever, the Victim exited the rental residence instead.M INOR
stlrrendered to law enforcem entshortly thereafter.
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Case 0:25-mj-06756-AOV Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/23/2025 Page 6 of 8
The V ictim wastaken to a safeplace and checked by em ergency m edicalservices.
Law enforcem entsubsequently interviewed the V ictim in an audio recorded interview .During the
interview ,the V ictim stated the following:
12. On oraboutDecem ber 22,2025,in the early m orning hours,the V ictim ,who is
rideshare driver,accepted a ride requestfrom a userw hose nam e w as listed as a fem ale'snam e.
The Victim accepted theride requestw hile in theAtlanta,Georgia area.Upon arrivalatthepickup
location,the Victim encountered three m ales instead ofthe assigned userw ho had requested the
ride.The V ictim recalled feeling uneasy,butcontinued w ith the ride,and drove the three m alesto
theirdestination.
l3. Upon arrivalatthe destination,the Victim unlocked the doors forthe three m ales
to departthe vehicle.Instead,however,one ofthe m alesw rapped aropearound the Victim 'sneck
from behind and the Victim struggled to save her life. The V ictim 's hands were then bound
togetheratthe wristand the V ictim w asdragged into the backseatofthe vehicle.The Victim w as
instructed to keep theirhead down and eyesclosed.The Victim w astold repeatedly notto struggle,
or that they would be killed. The V ictim told law enforcem ent that they w ere continuously
threatened by the m ales and told they would be shot if they did not com ply w ith the m ales'
dem ands.The V ictim stated thatthey complied with the m ales'dem ands because they feared for
theirlife.
l4. The V ictim estim ated being detained w ithin the V ICTIM VEHICLE foraround six
to ten hours.Atsom epoint,theV ictim becam eaw arethatthem aleswereattem pting to gain access
to the Victim 'sphoneand online banking inform ation.The m alesm ade theV ictim transferm oney
from their savings accounts to the V ictim 'sdebitcards.Atsom e point,the V ictim also becam e
aware thatthe three m aleswere likely escaped inm ates,based on theirconversations.
Case 0:25-mj-06756-AOV Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/23/2025 Page 7 of 8
15. Upon arrival in Florida,the three m ales used the Victim 's stolen bank cards at
severallocations.Som etim e after crossing into Florida,the Victim attem pted to escape,and one
ofthem alesassaulted theV ictim .Subsequently,the V ictim experienced increased threatsofbeing
shot,raped,and tortured.
16. Based offthe factsand circum stances,com bined w ith yourA ffiant'straining and
experience,there isprobable cause to believe thatthe Victim waskidnapped by the CH ARLES,
M INO R,and Y OHAN NES.CHA RLES,M IN OR,and Y OHAN NES'Sactionsaffected interstate
and/or foreign com m erce during the kidnapping by using the V ictim 's banking system and bank
cards.CHA RLES,M IN OR,and YO HAN NES'S actions furtheraffected interstate and/orforeign
com m erce by crossing state linesw ith a kidnapped victim .There isalso probable causeto believe
thatCHA RLES,M IN OR ,and Y OHAN NES caused the Victim to fear for their life or serious
physicalinjury based on the credible threatsdescribed herein and the use offorceagainstthe
V ictim .Further,there is probable cause to believe that a fireann w as used in furtherance of a
violentcrim e,based on the discovery ofthe firearm along the path CHARLES took whilefleeing
law enforcem ent.
l7. The firearm recovered from CHARLES w as a Sm ith & W esson,M & P 9 Shield,
9m m handgun m anufactured by Sm ith & W esson,w hich is a firearm s com pany located in
M aryville,Tennessee.Additionally,the recovered firearm contained approximately twelve (12)
liveroundsof9m m am m unition.
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Case 0:25-mj-06756-AOV Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/23/2025 Page 8 of 8
CO NCLU SIO N
18. Based on the foregoing facts and information,1 respectfully subm itthatthere is
probable causeto believethatCHA RLES,M IN OR,and Y OHAN NES com m itted K idnapping,in
violation ofTitle 18,United StatesCode,Sections 1201 and 2.
FURTH ER AFFIAN T SA YETH N AU GH T.
CON OR S.GOEPEL
SPECIAL A GEN T
FEDERAL BUREAU O F IN V ESTIGA TION
Sw orn to before m e on thi day ofDecem ber
2025,in M iam i,Florida.
N
A - A N
HON ORABLE ALICIA 0 .VA LLE
UNITED STA TES M A GISTRATE JUDGE
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