By Mitch Perry, Florida Phoenix
A host of top law enforcement officers briefed reporters in Tampa on Monday about their concerns about senior citizens in Florida being scammed by prisoners, although they offered few details.
They did say that the culprits exploiting older Florida residents are state prisoners whose weapons in these cases are contraband phones, cryptocurrency, and drone devices.
According to Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister, a 92-year-old man has been robbed of more than $800,000 over two years, and one of the perpetrators is an incarcerated individual. He added that more information would come later.
“We will have formal charges, but it got to the point where we started connecting the dots and realized we need to put the public on notice that a lot of these calls and outreach to seniors, it could very much be a scam,” said Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier.
Florida Department of Corrections (FDC) Secretary Ricky Dixon announced that in conjunction with the attorney general’s office and other agencies, “Operation Triple Threat” took place last week in three correction facilities containing approximately 3,000 inmates to search for illegal cellphones.
All told, he said, officers captured 400 phones. The Florida Department of Corrections told the Phoenix after this story was published that the institutions where those searches took place were Avon Park Correctional Institution (CI), Hardee CI, and DeSoto CI. A spokesperson added that from July 1, 2024, through May 17, 2025, FDC had intercepted over 7,250 phones within Florida’s prison system.
When asked how many cases involve prison inmates taking financial advantage of seniors, Uthmeier said “at least three known cases,” although he added that no formal charges have been brought to date.
“We’re still expanding to see how far it goes, but at least a few different perpetrators and likely several more than that as far as victims,” he said.
Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey and Florida Department of Law Enforcement Commissioner Mark Glass also appeared at the media availability.
This story was updated with additional information from the Florida Department of Corrections regarding the confiscation of contraband cellphones in Florida prisons.
