Sarasota-based mover charged with operating unregistered business

MANATEE -- A Sarasota man has been charged with operating an unregistered moving company, according to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

James Sposato was arrested at 10 a.m. Wednesday and charged with operating an unregistered moving business, according to his arrest report. He was released from Manatee County jail on a $500 bond later that day.

Sposato has been operating without a license since 2013, agricultural law enforcement investigator Mark Kohler told the Bradenton Herald. The agency had received three consumer complaints about him.

A check he wrote to pay a fine he was assessed even bounced, Kohler added.

On July 29, Kohler contacted Best Rate Movers, claiming he needed to move things out of a storage unit at Compass Self Storage, 7750 Lockwood Ridge Road, Bradenton, on Aug. 5, according to the report. The cost of the move was quoted at $450.

On Aug. 5, Sposato arrived to the agreed-upon storage facility in a moving truck with "Best Rate Movers" written along the side.

Sposato and Best Rate Movers was denied registration as a household mover in Florida on July 23, 2013, the report stated. He is the sole owner and operator.

No contract or paperwork was presented when Sposato arrived at the storage facility with two employees.

Sposato was then arrested and transported to the Manatee County jail.

Kohler said this was an isolated problem, and he knows of no other unregistered movers operating in the area.

Jessica De Leon, Herald law enforcement reporter, can be reached at 941-745-7049. You can follow her on Twitter @JDeLeon1012.

This story was originally published August 7, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Sarasota-based mover charged with operating unregistered business."