Junior Jean Baptiste, Fraudulent Tax Refund Checks, Florida 2023

Junior Jean Baptiste, a North Miami check casher, has been sentenced to more than 17 years in prison for cashing over $11 million in fraudulent tax refund checks.

According to the evidence presented in court, Baptiste operated a check cashing store called Surveillance Masters LLC in North Miami, Florida, from 2009 to 2011. During this period, he knowingly cashed over $11 million from over 2,000 fraudulent tax refund checks that had been issued in the names of dead people, disabled people, and other people who do not typically file tax returns.

The trial evidence showed that Baptiste took a fee of half of the value of the checks and made false identification documents for his files. He possessed over 900 false driver’s licenses, work permits, and green cards in connection with the cashing of these fraudulent checks.

The evidence at trial also showed that Baptiste used the fraudulently obtained funds for, among other things, a cargo ship, multiple vehicles, and rights to an album of a prominent hip-hop artist.

Junior Jean Baptiste, 36, was convicted on charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering, money laundering, possession of five or more false identification documents, theft of government money, and aggravated identity theft.

On [date], United States District Judge Jose E. Martinez sentenced Baptiste to a total of 212 months’ imprisonment, to be followed by three years of supervised release.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael N. Berger and Michael B. Nadler. The investigative efforts of IRS-CI and ICE-HSI were commended by Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida.

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

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