The Adventures of Florida Man

Florida man faked Trump presidential pardon and tried a hitman to avoid fraud charges
USA TODAY
KINSEY CROWLEY, USA TODAY
November 14, 2023 at 9:02 AM

A Florida man who fabricated a presidential pardon to avoid charges has racked up 35 years in prison sentences after pleading guilty to fraud, murder-for-hire and obstruction of justice.

Alexander Leszczynski, a 25-year-old Tampa-area resident, was charged with deed fraud and money laundering in April 2022, according to a Monday news release by the Department of Justice.

While in prison, the FBI learned through a confidential informant that Leszczynski was asking about a hitman to kill two of his fraud victims because "his pending criminal case (the fraud case) would have to be dropped if the victims were dead," the release states.

It wasn't the first time that Leszczynski had explored extreme measures in an attempt to clear his name. When officials froze his account after finding evidence of fraud, he tried to have it released by making a fake presidential pardon signed by former President Donald Trump, prosecutors said.

Leszczynski pleaded guilty to both cases and has since tried sending several letters asking others to come forward and claim guilt in his cases in exchange for money.

A U.S. Middle District of Florida judge sentenced him to 17 years and 6 months for murder and obstruction of justice, which is to be served consecutively to the 17 years and 6 months for the fraud counts.

Leszczynski's attorney Dane Chase provided his reaction to the sentences to USA TODAY Tuesday in an emailed statement.

"The sentences imposed upon Mr. Leszczynski reflect an utter disregard for the mitigating factors of youth. Mr. Leszczynski was in his early twenties at the time of his charged offenses. Science has proven that the human brain continues to develop until approximately the age of 25. Mr. Leszczynski’s sentences do not adequately account for this fact, and we look forward to litigating this issue and others on appeal," Chase's statement read.

Leszczynski used fake religious organizations, deeds to conduct fraud
According to a DOJ release from his first sentencing, Leszczynski engaged in two separate fraud schemes.

The first involved fake religious organizations that prosecutors say he used to conceal money he garnered from bad checks and Payroll Protection Plan loans.

Under organizations like, Love & Bliss, Aura, Inc., King Neptune and King Cobra, Inc., Leszczynski fraudulently applied for PPP loans to bring in $1.3 million.

He then used a "check kiting" scheme, or knowingly depositing bad checks from one account to another, in an attempt to deposit more than $3 million in the Love & Bliss accounts.

It was then that the government froze one of his accounts worth $337,000 and Leszczynski tried to exonerate himself with a fake pardon from Trump.


Trump Pardon 11 by USA TODAY Network on Scribd


In the other scheme, Leszczynski created fake deeds signing himself and his businesses as the owner of 10 properties around the U.S. When owners and attorneys attempted to correct the deeds, he harassed them through written communication, the release says.

In addition to his prison sentence, Leszczynski was ordered to forfeit his proceedings and pay restitution, owing more than $958,000 in total.

Leszczynski tried to pay undercover agent $30,000 to kill deed fraud victims
In August 2022, the FBI learned that Leszczynski was trying to hire a hitman while in jail to kill two victims of his deed fraud scheme, the Justice Department said.

Leszczynski told a confidential informant that the fraud case would have been dropped if the victims were dead. He also said that he had $45,000 hidden in his home that he could use to pay someone to kill them.

The informant told Leszczynski that he could set up a meeting with a "hitman," who was actually an undercover agent.

Leszczynski had multiple calls with the undercover agent, during which he revealed the name, locations and descriptions of the two fraud victims. He also negotiated a price of $30,000, confirming multiple times that he wanted the two people dead.

He pleaded guilty to the crime in November 2022, but later withdrew his plea. Leszczynski then pleaded guilty in June and was sentenced this month.

Florida man throws package of Oreos at wife while arguing over empty coffee maker: officials
The Florida man became 'aggressive' before throwing the Oreos, deputies allege
By Adam Sabes Fox News
Published November 21, 2023 5:46pm EST

A Florida man allegedly threw a package of Oreo cookies at his wife while the two were arguing over their empty coffee maker.

Deputies wrote in an affidavit that John Sandoval, 70, was arrested Saturday morning after he allegedly threw the package of Oreo cookies at his wife while the two argued over their coffee maker that had no water in it, according to FOX 35.

According to Lake County Sheriff's deputies, the couple, who has been married for over 40 years, got into a verbal argument while sitting at a table.

At some point, Sandoval allegedly became "aggressive" and threw the package of Oreo cookies at her chest, which caused her to fall.


John Sandoval in a booking picture

Deputies wrote in an affidavit that John Sandoval, 70, was arrested Saturday morning after he allegedly threw the package of Oreo cookies at his wife while the two argued over their coffee maker, according to FOX 35. (Lake County Sheriff's Office)

Sandoval also placed his hands on her throat while she was on the ground, deputies said, adding his airways weren't restricted.

The woman's daughter urged her mother to file charges in the incident, which wasn't until the next day.

Deputies wrote that they didn't observe any "obvious injuries" on the woman.

When interviewed by detectives, Sandoval allegedly admitted to picking up the package of cookies and throwing it at her, but didn't have any recollection of grabbing her throat.

Sandoval was charged with felony domestic battery on a person 65 years or older.

Florida Woman Pleads Not to Have Adult Toys Confiscated During Drug Arrest: Police
“Don’t take my dildo,” Ariella Messina pleaded with police
Published 11/27/23 11:29 AM ET| Updated 16 hr ago
Carley Welch


During the search early Tuesday morning, police also seized cocaine, brass knuckles and other drug paraphernalia. Martin County Sheriff's Office

Ariella Messina, 27, of Jensen Beach, Florida, was arrested on Nov. 21 after SWAT team members searched her bag and found methamphetamines and other narcotics.

While law enforcement was confiscating the drugs, Messina pleaded with them not to take a blue vibrator-like device, per a police report obtained by The Smoking Gun.

"Don’t take my dildo," she asked, per the report.

The backpack reportedly contained her license and "a necklace with the name Ariella," cops wrote in the report. They also stated that by asking for her sex toy, Messina made it "apparent that the backpack was hers and she was aware of the contents inside."

During the search early Tuesday morning, police also seized cocaine, brass knuckles, and other drug paraphernalia along with the methamphetamines, as mentioned earlier. According to the report, Messina was one of five individuals arrested at the scene.

At the time of her arrest, Messina was on probation for a 2022 conviction for possession of cocaine, ecstasy, and marijuana. The drugs found in 2022 were found locked inside a safe in her residence, according to records obtained by the outlet.

Messina was booked into a Martin County jail on a pair of felony drug counts. She is being held on a $10,000 bond.

The whereabouts of Messina's dildo are currently unknown.

‘Tried to rip my face off’: Florida woman allegedly attacked an elderly person trying to change the thermostat
COLIN KALMBACHER, Nov 18th, 2023, 4:34 pm

A Florida woman is accused of attacking another woman over apparent climate control concerns, authorities say.

Breiland Springer, 31, stands accused of one felony count of domestic battery of a person over the age of 65, according to court records and a criminal probable cause affidavit reviewed by Law&Crime.

Details about the incident are scarce.

A sheriff’s deputy arrived at a residence in Palm Beach County in response to a domestic call just before 5 p.m. on Nov. 2, the affidavit says. The alleged victim said that at around 1 a.m., she went to adjust the hallway thermostat when she was confronted, unawares, by the defendant.

The older woman told law enforcement that Springer came up behind her and grabbed her by her face, according to the affidavit.

“Tried to rip my face off,” the older woman told the deputy.

More Law&Crime coverage: ‘Brave pup’: Florida dog intervenes while owner is being stabbed and suffers minor injuries, heroically fends off woman’s attacker

The alleged victim said, however, that she was able to get away from her alleged assailant. The affidavit said “no other witnesses or security cameras” captured the altercation. The deputy also wrote the older woman had no visible “marks or bruises” on her face.

Law&Crime reached out to the sheriff’s office for additional details on this story, but no response was received by the time of publication.

When interviewed by the deputy, Springer allegedly said the other woman was lying. Then, the deputy handcuffed the younger woman behind her back and arrested her, according to the affidavit. The arrest was captured on body-worn camera footage.


Breiland Springer appears in a booking photo. (Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office)

Several details in the affidavit are redacted because the alleged victim invoked the Sunshine State’s victim protection statute.

During Springer’s first court appearance, a judge found probable cause to sustain the charge against her.

More Law&Crime coverage: Florida man who tried to help feed a woman and her kids survives double throat cutting and being dumped in a river after what cops call ‘a social media date turned bad’

Judge Sarah Willis is overseeing the case.

The suspect was determined to be indigent, and a public defender was appointed, according to Palm Beach County court records. She was ordered to be taken to a mental health clinic for assessment, treatment, and stabilization.

Springer will be expected to follow any advice on treatment or follow-up advised by medical staff. She was released on her own recognizance with the bond condition that she has no “violent contact” with the other woman.

She’s set to appear in court on Dec. 7

Man busted selling 40 pounds of illegal horse meat in Hialeah Gardens, cops say
Published: December 14, 2023 at 10:29 AM


Alain Arencibia-Diaz

HIALEAH GARDENS, Fla. – A horse meat sting in a Hialeah Gardens Home Depot parking lot led to the arrest of a Miami Lakes man on a felony charge Wednesday, according to police.

Miami-Dade police said an informant tipped them off Monday that a horse had been slaughtered for its meat and police coordinated to set up a deal to purchase it from Alain Arencibia-Diaz.

According to police, the undercover informant met the 39-year-old in the parking lot of the Home Depot at 13895 W. Okeechobee Road to complete the transaction Wednesday afternoon.

The informant gave Arencibia-Diaz $500 and, in return, got a large black plastic bag containing roughly 40 pounds of the illicit meat, an arrest report states.

That’s when police said officers moved in to arrest the Cuban national on a charge of buying, selling, or possessing horse meat, a third-degree felony.

Arencibia-Diaz was no longer listed in Miami-Dade jail records as of Thursday morning.

According to Michigan State University’s Animal Legal & Historical Center, “Florida makes it unlawful for any person to sell in the markets of this state horse meat for human consumption unless the horse meat is clearly stamped, marked, and described as horse meat for human consumption or to knowingly transport, distribute, sell, purchase, or possess horse meat for human consumption that is not clearly stamped, marked, and described as horse meat for human consumption or horse meat that is not acquired from a licensed slaughterhouse.”

There are no licensed slaughterhouses for horse meat in the country, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Florida man smothers nephew's meatball sandwich with eyedrop solution because he 'hated him' that day: police
Dani Medina
Mon, December 18, 2023 at 8:45 AM MST

PINELLAS PARK, Fla. - A Florida man has found himself behind bars after he allegedly smothered his nephew's meatball sandwich with eyedrop solution because he "hated him" that day, according to police.

James Leach was arrested and charged with poisoning of food or water after the incident that happened in Pinellas Park on Wednesday, according to an arrest affidavit from the Pinellas Park Police Department.

The 45-year-old was at a business and asked an employee for a bottle of eyedrops, saying he had dry eyes, according to the affidavit. The employee told police that Leach was a regular customer and was having issues with his nephew, the victim. Leach reportedly made it a point to tell the employee that he "hated" his nephew that day.


Photo: Pinellas County Sheriffs Office

When the employee handed the bottle of eyedrops to Leach, he opened one of the containers of food and poured the solution "all over" his nephew's meatball sandwich, according to the affidavit.

"The witness stated that could hurt someone and (Leach) responded by saying that it would only cause (his nephew) to ‘s--- himself and puke his brains out,’" the affidavit said.

Police obtained surveillance footage that shows Leach allegedly taking the bottle of eyedrop solution and pouring it on the sandwich. Officials were able to snag his address using the business' computer system due to prior purchases and deliveries, where Leach and his nephew both live.

The nephew told police that he only ate a "small portion" of the sandwich and didn't know his uncle had poured eyedrop solution on it, according to the affidavit. He ultimately refused medical treatment.

Police said Leach and his nephew have a "long history" of domestic-related incidents, plus several prior calls for service at their home.

Leach was taken into custody and transported to the Pinellas County Jail, where he remains on $50,000 bond

Florida woman hid shell casings from deadly shooting in her ‘front private area’: Police
BRANDI BUCHMANDec 29th, 2023, 4:38 pm


Left: Kevin Harrison booking photo Leesburg Police Department/Right: Destiny Pendleton booking photo Leesburg Police Department

A woman in Florida has been charged with evidence tampering and resisting officers after police say she hid gun shell casings in her privates that she snagged from the scene of a fatal shooting.

According to arrest records and a police affidavit obtained Friday by Law&Crime, police arrested Destiny Pendleton, 23, on Dec. 27 after receiving calls about a shooting at a residence in Leesburg. Once on the scene, they found a 37-year-old man “covered in blood and motionless.”

The man, later identified as Lekendre Hall, was dead — and Pendleton, police said, was standing next to his body.

She was detained there without incident until police patting her down noticed “obstructions in her left front pocket resembling a spent shell casing.”

There were three or four shell casings that officers could discern at first, they alleged, and when they asked Pendleton what the items were, she allegedly confirmed they were taken from the crime scene where officers first began chasing her. But a few moments later, an arresting officer went to take them out of Pendleton’s pocket but they had gone missing. When asked where they were, she told officers she didn’t know what they were talking about, an affidavit shows.

Search with the help of a female officer shortly after that exchange, however, led to three of the casings being found inside Pendleton’s “front private area where she had taken them out of her front left pocket and put them in that private area.”

The man accused of killing Hall, Kevin Harrison, 19, surrendered himself to authorities on Friday. A copy of his arrest record was not immediately available upon request to the Leesburg Police Department on Friday.