Stephen M. Alford, Wire Fraud, Florida 2021

Fort Walton Beach Man Sentenced to 20 Years for $25 Million Wire Fraud Scheme

Stephen M. Alford, a 62-year-old resident of Fort Walton Beach, Florida, has pleaded guilty to wire fraud in connection with a scheme to defraud a victim out of $25 million.

Pursuant to a plea agreement, Alford admitted to engaging in a scheme to defraud the victim between March 16 and April 7, 2021. The scheme involved a series of meetings and text message exchanges between Alford and the victim, as well as undercover recordings arranged by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

During the exchanges, Alford repeatedly promised the victim that he had access to the current President of the United States and could secure a Presidential Pardon for a family member of the victim in exchange for the $25 million payment.

The case against Alford resulted from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorneys David L. Goldberg and Lazaro P. Fields are prosecuting the case.

Alford faces up to 20 years’ imprisonment, followed by a term of supervised release. Sentencing in the case is set for February 16, 2022, at 9:00 a.m. at the United States Courthouse in Pensacola before the Honorable United States District Judge M. Casey Rodgers.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General.

For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.

MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS

White Collar Crime

Arthur J Murton, Financial Institution Mismanagement, Washington 2025

Feb 24, 2026

White Collar Crime

Neptune Fireworks, Money Laundering, Florida 1997

Jan 15, 1997

White Collar Crime

Eva Christine Rodriguez, Mortgage Modification Scheme, New York 2018

Aug 27, 2020

White Collar Crime

Daniel Berglund, Tax Evasion, Minnesota 2023

Oct 8, 2021