Bradenton woman charged after stealing nearly $50K in phone scam, deputies say
A Bradenton woman faces felony charges after investigators say she received and laundered nearly $50,000 stolen from a Manatee County resident in a phone scam where impostors posed as Bank of America and the FBI.
Jinny Luanda Charles, 32, is charged with grand theft and money laundering, court records show, after investigators say she received a $47,200 wire from the victim into her Chase bank account before quickly moving the money to conceal its source.
According to an arrest report, the victim told investigators he received a phone call in October from someone claiming to be with Bank of America’s fraud department about a $500 cell phone purchase at Cricket Wireless.
Investigators say the scammer then escalated the scheme by transferring the victim to accomplices who were posing as a Bank of America corporate representative and later an FBI agent. Investigators say the scammers convinced the victim to provide banking usernames, passwords and verification codes.
The victim ultimately authorized three wire transfers totaling $78,887, according to investigators.
Bradenton woman arrested in scam investigation
Detectives said they traced one of those transfers, totaling $47,200, to Charles’ bank account. Investigators say the money was deposited into her account the same day as the scam.
Investigators say Charles immediately began what they described as “layering the funds,” a term used in money laundering to describe moving money through various transactions to obscure its origin.
An attorney representing Charles did not immediately respond to the Bradenton Herald’s request for comment.
According to an arrest report, that activity included cash withdrawals at an ATM in Lauderdale Lakes, transfers of more than $9,000 to Cash App and moving money into a newly opened savings account.
Charles also transferred $15,000 through Zelle in three $5,000 increments to a Wells Fargo account she owned, the report says. From there, she allegedly sent additional funds through Cash App and Zelle transactions labeled “for rent,” which detectives described as further efforts to conceal the source of the money.
Despite the sudden influx of money deposited into her account, investigators with the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office wrote that Charles “never filed any fraud reports of any kind or reported the transaction to her bank.” Instead, detectives say she immediately transferred and withdrew funds for her own use.
Scamming crimes on the rise in Bradenton
Police have warned that scammers frequently impersonate banks, federal agencies and other trusted institutions to pressure victims into transferring money or sharing sensitive information.
In a January interview with the Bradenton Herald, detectives with the Bradenton Police Department’s Elder Fraud unit described fraud targeting residents as an “epidemic” and said stolen funds are often difficult or impossible to recover once they are quickly moved through multiple accounts.
According to jail records, detectives arrested Charles on Jan. 27 and booked her into the Manatee County Jail, where she remains in custody on $60,000 bond.
Court records show Charles pleaded not guilty on Monday and demanded a jury trial. Her attorney filed a motion to reduce bond, which remains pending, the following day. She is next scheduled to appear in court for an arraignment on March 13 before Circuit Court Judge Ryan Felix at the Manatee County Judicial Center.
If convicted, Charles faces up to 15 years in prison on each second-degree felony charge under Florida law.
