Pinellas County Man Tried To Hire Hitman To Take Out Witnesses: FBI

NORTH REDINGTON BEACH, FL — A 24-year-old North Redington Beach man who made national headlines when he forged a fake pardon from then-President Donald Trump has now been indicted on charges he tried to hire a hitman to kill two government employees prepared to testify against him.

According to investigators, in August and September, Alexander Dean Leszczynski of 173rd Avenue East promised to pay a person to kill two people who are expected to testify against him in a case in which he's accused of applying for and receiving two Payroll Protection Plan loans totaling about $196,000.

Prosecutors said he also engaged in a check kiting scheme in which he tried to disposit $2.7 million in worthless checks into the account of a Christian nonprofit organization he started called Love & Bliss Inc.

After an investigation was launched, the government seized $337,000 from one of Leszczynski’s accounts.

“When he discovered that the money had been frozen, he attempted to have it released by producing a fabricated pardon purportedly signed by former President Donald Trump,” Handberg said.

The government said was also involved in another scheme in which he tried to deed himself more than 10 properties around the country valued at more than $300 million, including a property reportedly owned by Jeffrey Epstein, who killed himself in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. The properties Leszczynski tried to deed to himself included Epstein’s mansion in Palm Beach and a ranch in New Mexico.

See related story: Pinellas Man Accused Of Creating Fake Trump Pardon To Escape PPP Fraud

When the true property owners or their attorneys tried to correct the fraudulent deeds, prosecutors said Leszczynski “responded by sending harassing and threatening letters, emails, and faxes.”

The latest indictment against Leszczynski also contends he tried to obstruct the court case against him in the fraudulent PPP loans and check-kiting case.

Leszczynski was arrested May 17 and is being held without bail in the Pinellas County Jail.

His case is scheduled to go to trial in December.

If convicted, Leszczynski faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison on each count.

The indictment also notifies Leszczynski that the United States intends to order him to turn over his property or assets traceable to his illegal activities.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office.