St. Pete Man Guilty Of Car Title Fraud Gets Prison Time: U.S. DOJ

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — A St. Petersburg man will spend nearly 15 years behind bars for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.

Jonathan Daniels, 46, who was found guilty at a trial on Monday, was sentenced to 14 years and seven months in federal prison.

Daniels and his co-conspirators were involved in a fraud scheme to strip bank liens from more than 100 vehicles and obtain clear titles to the vehicles, taking over the ownership of these vehicles from financial institutions and their owners, the DOJ said.

They submitted fraudulent and counterfeit documents and fake certified mail receipts to Florida tax collector offices to make it look like the vehicles had towing and storage liens, which allowed Daniels and his co-conspirators to obtain clear titles to the vehicles and sell them, the department said.

“The Secret Service remains committed to investigating those who engage in crimes that exploit our financial system,” Robert Engel, special agent in charge with the United States Secret Service’s Tampa field office, said.

“The U. S. Postal Inspection Service will aggressively investigate individuals who engage in fraudulent schemes at the expense of the American public and our financial institutions,” Steven Hodges, acting postal inspector in charge of the Miami Division, said. “We are committed to working with our partner law enforcement agencies to bring justice to those looking to use fraudulent means for personal gain. Criminals must understand there are consequences for their actions.”