92-Year-Old FL Man Swindled Out Of $800K In Romance Scam

ORLANDO, FL — A 92-year-old Sun City Center man was swindled out of more than $800,000 in a bank and romance scam, according to a Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office news release.

In June 2022, when the victim from Sun City Center was targeted in the scam, he transferred thousands from his Fidelity account to his Wells Fargo account. The money was depleted from this account to multiple individuals through Uphold, a cryptocurrency platform, peer-to-peer transactions, ATM withdrawals, point-of-sale transactions and various other ways, the sheriff’s office said.

On March 10 of this year, Otiz Swinton Jr., 37, was caught on camera at a Publix at 5265 South John Young Parkway in Orlando using the victim's Wells Fargo card to make a purchase.

From March 13 through April 2, five counterfeit checks totaling $14,300 were made payable to Swinton from the victim's Wells Fargo account, the sheriff’s office said. During that time, various other charges were made using the victim's card, totaling more than $5,000.

Through investigative means, detectives determined that he had someone else withdrawing money from the victim's Wells Fargo account while he was in Florida state prison for fraud.

Detectives arrested Swinton in Orlando on April 30. He was charged with fraudulent use of personal information of an elderly person, fraudulent use of personal information over $5,000 or 10 but less than 20 victims, and fraudulent use of credit card over $100, and five counts of uttering a forged instrument.

"These predatory schemes rob our residents of the security and financial stability they've spent their lives building," Sheriff Chad Chronister said. "Those who deliberately prey on the elderly are the worst kinds of criminals as they exploit vulnerability, trust, and often isolation for personal gain. We will continue to pursue anyone who targets our seniors with every resource at our disposal."