Stephen H. McIntyre, Money Laundering, Florida 2020

Tampa, Florida – A Tampa businessman has been sentenced to prison for his role in a money laundering scheme that involved the resale of stolen and fraudulent gift cards.

Stephen H. McIntyre, 51, was sentenced to five years and three months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven.

According to court documents, McIntyre operated SHM Gulf Enterprises, LLC, doing business as Tampa Gift Card King, a secondhand dealer that sold unused or partially used gift cards to individuals for a percentage of the cards' face value in exchange for cash.

However, McIntyre and his co-conspirators resold the returned merchandise cards and gift cards even though they knew some of the cards had been obtained via theft or fraud. They also conducted other illicit transactions involving the cards and used the proceeds for their personal enrichment.

McIntyre and his co-conspirators used the proceeds of the scheme to purchase and renovate real properties, acquire vehicles, finance business operations, and otherwise for their personal enrichment.

Additionally, McIntyre and his co-conspirator Brandy Fuller used the card numbers and PINs of some of the previously sold cards to identify residual balances on the cards, stole the residual balances, aggregated them, and used the proceeds to purchase new gift cards.

Fuller previously pleaded guilty to her role in this case and was sentenced to 36 months' probation and ordered to pay $25,925 in restitution.

The case was investigated by the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office and the United States Secret Service, and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Rachelle DesVaux Bedke.

McIntyre was ordered to forfeit more than $690,000, a 2014 Cadillac Escalade, and other funds that are traceable to the proceeds of the money laundering conspiracy.

McIntyre had pleaded guilty on January 21, 2020.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-mdfl/pr/tampa-gift-card-king-sentenced-prison