South Florida Criminal Attorneys Blog

Elderly Miami Man Convicted of 2003 Homicide

March 28, 2020 | Michael B. Cohen, P.A.

Circumstantial evidence can only take investigators so far in a crime when speculating whether a suspect is the actual perpetrator. This was the case in the 2003 murder of Gladys Jorge who was savagely beaten to death in her home in mid-July.

At the time of the homicide, Jorge shared a home with her boyfriend Eugenio Fariñas. According to her family their relationship was rocky to say the least, but they still coexisted in the same residence for quite a long time.

The victim’s body was found by Jorge’s mother, who lived door during the summer of 2003. According to police records she had a key to her daughter’s house. When officers were dispatched to the residence where they were met by Jorge’s mother and sister, they were advised that she was inside and unresponsive. Paramedics quickly pronounced her dead after entering the home.

South Florida Woman Receives Sentence of Probation for Guilty Plea on Embezzlement Charges

February 29, 2020 | Michael B. Cohen, P.A.

“A gambling problem can negatively affect an individual’s home life, financial status, career, education, social relationships, and physical and emotional health.”

These words can be found on the helpline page of The Florida Council on Compulsive Gambling’s website.

Their mission statement demonstrates that they’re “committed to increasing public awareness about problem and compulsive gambling.”

Florida Man Tricked Teen Girls into Prostitution by Offering Help for Victims, Conclusion

January 26, 2020 | Michael B. Cohen, P.A.

Last month’s blog post settled with the FBI’s arrests of William Foster, Ashleigh Holloway and Hanah Chan.

Foster had been charged with an array of sex trafficking charges while Holloway and Chan had soon after surrendered to federal authorities and now face similar charges.

Foster’s complete indictment which was unsealed on December 9 of this past year charge him with sex trafficking of a minor, conspiracy to sex traffic a minor and transporting with the intent to engage in prostitution. Holloway and Chan who were alleged to be Foster’s two main recruiters were charged under the same indictment with sex trafficking by fraud, coercion or force. Additionally Chan was charged with transporting an individual for prostitution.

Florida Man Tricked Teen Girls into Prostitution by Offering Help for Victims

December 27, 2019 | Michael B. Cohen, P.A.

Florida has local human trafficking task forces in each of its sixty-seven counties.

The crime’s statistics have been precipitous; having a very steep ascent year after year.

Over the past seven years total cases have risen from a reported 931 contacts in 2012 to 1885 ending 2018; more than double.

Three Suspects in Custody for Robbery/Murder of South Florida firefighter

November 29, 2019 | Michael B. Cohen, P.A.

It appears that an off-duty Coral Springs firefighter was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

It was a warm balmy Florida Saturday evening when Christopher Randazzo decided to visit one of his old haunts where he previously tended bar for close to twenty years.

The Aruba Beach Café, right off the water’s edge has been a fixture in Lauderdale-By-The-Sea for many years, catering to those who enjoy tropical drinks, excellent American-Caribbean cuisine and live nightly music. The popular establishment is accessible by both land or by aquatic means.

Coral Springs Special Victims Unit Solves another Cold Case

October 29, 2019 | Michael B. Cohen, P.A.

After watching coverage of local police solving a rape case that occurred in 1987, a woman (whose name is being withheld) decided to ask the same exclusive unit to take a renewed look at her case which occurred over thirty-five years ago. She decided it was time for someone to pay for the knifepoint atrocity she experienced at her Ramblewood home in Coral Springs, Florida so long ago. The woman had just moved into the area with her family a few months before the alleged assault occurred.

This Facebook post among other reporting in local newspapers and a substantial amount of TV coverage gave her the hope and belief that what happened to her on Aug. 22, 1983 should be revisited.

Last month’s article posted on this blog highlighted the story of the arrest of Frank Montoya along with other victories of cold cases which were dug up and solved by the Coral Springs Special Victims Unit after many years of them seemingly being forgotten.

31-Year-Old Coral Springs Rape Case Produces Arrest

September 29, 2019 | Michael B. Cohen, P.A.

The Coral Springs Police Department’s Special Victim’s Unit is getting a reputation.

With the help of the Broward County Sheriff’s Office Crime Lab and their own Crime Scene Investigation Unit they’ve been able to dig through cold cases dating back for close to 40 years bringing justice for victims that never imagined that day would come.

Thanks to the advances in criminal technology specifically advances with DNA testing, many unsolvable cases have borne fruit after many had given up hope.

21-Year-Old Involved in Two Broward County Bank Robberies Surrenders

August 25, 2019 | Michael B. Cohen, P.A.

Bank robbery has been a federal crime in the United States since 1934. This includes National banks, state member banks, savings and loans, credit unions, armored cars and related institutions that are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Company (FDIC).

It was in the 1930’s when the John Dillinger gang also known as The Terror Gang caught the country’s attention wreaking havoc with their daring robberies of twenty-four banks. Since that era the FBI has become the leader of all investigations relating to any assault on the Federal Reserve System.

Dillinger became a folk hero to some when the press ran embellished accounts of his swagger and flamboyant personality, equating him to a then day Tony Soprano figure.

Newly Appointed Gregory Tony Cleaning up Broward Sheriff’s Office

July 27, 2019 | Michael B. Cohen, P.A.

Recently appointed Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony has been working tirelessly to change what has been charged as an existing culture of unnecessary violence that has recently gripped his department.

The department has been heavily criticized going back to the Parkland shootings at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

Tony who was a previously retired Coral Springs police sergeant was appointed by Governor Ron DeSantis in January replacing then Sheriff Scott Israel.

Cutting Edge DNA Website Limited by User Backlash

June 30, 2019 | Michael B. Cohen, P.A.

At the end of last November, an article was posted on this blog that related to the use of genealogy websites by police to find and catch criminals utilizing DNA submitted by users, many from cold cases that were at one time considered unsolvable.

The article told the story of the arrest of Benjamin Lee Holmes who allegedly murdered a University of Central Florida student named Christine Franke in October, 2001.

The case had gone cold for close to eighteen years.