Florida Sentinel Bulletin

Family members and the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office is asking for help in locating a teenager that has been missing for more than 30 days.

Jeanice Gabriel Boldewyn, 16, was last seen May 30, 2013 in Brandon near Lumsden Street around 7 a. m. as she was preparing to go to school.

According to the report, when her mother returned home that evening, Jeanice was not there and not been to school.

Jeanice is believed to be with a 28-year-old man, but it is unknown what her relationship is with him.

Family members said Jeanice has been seen in the Sulphur Springs area, and is described as having long black hair that may have red weave in it.

If anyone comes in contact with Jeanice Boldewyn, please contact the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office at (813) 247-8200, or (813) 247-8000.

BY IRIS B. HOLTON

Sentinel City Editor

The United States Small Business Development Corporation (USSDBC), a federal and state contact vendor, non-profit agency and minority governed economic development firm) is proud to announce that it has saved bay area businesses over 1,000,000 in retail spending toward the establishment & development of small businesses this year.

Dr. Alex’ander Wilson President of the organization said, “In 2010 USSBDC launched its Service Grant program, which is designed to give new and existing businesses an edge. The program offers $50,000 in services to start-ups without credit checks, criminal checks, collateral, or fiscal monitoring. It is credited with stimulating the economy, and numerous businesses are taking advantage of the program statewide.

However, Dr. Wilson said, “Approximately 15% of the funds set aside government agency procurement officers are going unchallenged by minority business owners.

“We have been taught that commercial and residential are the best segments of business, when in fact the federal government buys practically everything.

“The minority community looses over $1 billion every year due to registration issues. We will help anyone asking for clarity of this process,” Dr. Wilson said.

Since its inception in 2001, the company has begun offering courses online and offline to assist small business owners throughout the entire country. It has also   launched initiatives in Philippines, India, England and Panama.

Founded in Lutz, the firm now has its headquarters in Washington, D. C. However, it still maintains an office in Tampa at 4809 E Busch Boulevard #106.

Dr. Wilson said, “New small business owners would benefit from such tools as free marketing, no money down advertising, free financial equipment, no money down financial aid, and basic consultation at no upfront cost to those needing assistance.

Anyone wishing to obtain more information can contact Dr. Wilson at (888) 404-3313; at  www.TheStateOfFlorida.org; or schedule an appointment via the website or mobile application.

BY IRIS B. HOLTON

Sentinel City Editor

The U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is proposing to close its Tampa Field Office. Located in downtown Tampa, 15 people are employed in the office.

Jereon Brown, spokesman for HUD, said the Tampa Office is one of 16 slated for closure. “The Tampa Field Office is one of 16 nationwide that proposed for closure. We are currently negotiating with the Union.”

Brown said 15 employees would be displaced if the office is closed. However, he said the employees were given the option of early retirement, relocation, or taking a $25,000 buyout that would also allow them to retire.

Brown further said the decision to close the offices was based on budget restrictions and reducing overhead. “In the 1980s we had 16,000 employees and 80 offices.

“Now we have 9,000 and 80 offices. Each year we spend $193,000 on the building, $56,000 on yearly administrative costs, as well as the cost of utilities, etc. Closing this office would save more than $2 million per year.

“We understand how the community feels, and we have decided to keep offices in each state,” Brown said in response to the online petition to keep the office open.

However, he said, the government is looking at technology and residents would still be able to conduct their business on line at the HUD website or through the use of Social Media. He further stated that residents could file on line and that HUD will also have employees rotating through the area throughout the year.

BY IRIS B. HOLTON

Sentinel City Editor

Last month, a jury convicted a 20-year-old salesman of sexual battery. Last week, the young man was sentenced to life in prison for the crime.

However, his parents feel that there were extenuating circumstances that should have been taken into consideration.

Rashad Hales was arrested December 30, 2011, and charged with two counts of attempted murder, three counts of sexual battery, two counts of armed burglary, and tampering with a witness. The Hillsborough County State Attorney’s Office dropped one count of armed burglary and the tampering with a witness charge. Hillsborough County Judge Chet Thorpe dismissed the attempted murder charges during the trial.

According to police, Hales, who was an authorized salesman of ADT Security, was working as a door-to-door salesman at the time of the offense. He reportedly went to the woman’s home to solicit business for the company.

The woman reportedly told him that her fiancée handled those types of affairs and he was not at home at the time.

Hales was convicted of returning to the home within 10 minutes. When the victim opened the door, he alleged told the victim he talked to her fiancée about signing up.

The victim attempted to close the door and Hales pushed his way inside the home and locked the door, she told police. He then allegedly beat and strangled and raped her. Hales was arrested at a Shell Gas Station, 11203 Sheldon Road a short time later. Police said Hales admitted to the offense after his arrest.

His parents, Bobby and Regina Hall, said they have several problems with the case.

Mrs. Hall said she feels others should take responsibility for the crime. “My son has had problems such as getting suspended and getting kicked out of school. But, he was about 6 years old when he started taking Ritalin, and he took it until he was 17.

“He had anger problems and I tried to get help for him at MHC (the Mental Health Center). They failed my son. When he turned 18, they just took him off his medication and just let him be.”

She said it didn’t seem right when they (doctors) took him off of the medication, but Rashad tried to live a normal life. “He hoped he could manage on his own. He had gone back to school trying to get his GED, he started working, and he had signed up to go into the Job Corps. He was supposed to leave in March 2012,” his mother said.

She said an ADT salesman came to her home during winter break and told her son the company was hiring. He passed the background check and had been working 10 or 11 days when the incident happened.

Bobby Hall said, “We have a lot of young Black kids they put on medication and then they say the kids don’t need it anymore. Then when the kids go off and do something they wonder why.”

Mrs. Hall said, “He is a good boy and didn’t just wake up and decide that he was going to do this. He was also in training and he was supposed to be working with someone at all times, but he was left alone.”

She further stated that her son had called his supervisor to pick him up, but did not get an answer. “When he finally did reach the supervisor, they got into an argument. He was frustrated and just snapped.”

After his arrest, Mrs. Hall said since her son didn’t have a criminal record, he didn’t know not to talk to police and to answer their questions.

Bobby Hall also said that Rashad scored out to 271/2 years in prison. But Judge Thorpe sentenced him to life in prison and an additional 3-30 year sentenced to run consecutively. “The fact that he had mental issues was never taken into consideration.”

Mrs. Hall said, “I felt the judge’s mind was already made up. They were out to get her son because of the race of the young lady.”

A spokesman for the Hillsborough County State Attorney’s Office said Judge Thorpe had the discretion of sentencing Hales to the lower end of the guidelines or up to life. He further said the victim had requested Hales be sentenced to life.

At 11:48 p. m. Sunday, Tampa Police officers were conducting a traffic stop at Rome Avenue and Green Street in West Tampa.

Officers at the scene reported that the driver refused to stop the car, and when the officers tried to box it in, the driver continued driving toward a squad car. An officer at the scene fired a shot at the suspect, who managed to escape. The car was found empty a short time later.

No one was injured in the incident, and police report that the driver was the only occupant of the vehicle at the time of the incident.

Police gave no description of the driver.

BY LEON B. CREWS

Sentinel Staff Writer

Tampa attorney, Susan Johnson-Velez, has joined other local African Americans in making history.

Atty. Johnson-Velez has been unanimously selected by her colleagues to be the new president of the Hillsborough County Bar Association, making her the first African American woman to hold that honor.

Atty. Johnson-Velez said it is an honor to know that her colleagues are confident she is capable of leading the group.

“I’ve been committed to serving the bar for more than 20 years. I also appreciate the historic significance, and this is in line with what I teach my children to not accept failure or limitations, and to always strive to be the best.”

Atty. Johnson-Velez said it was while she was enrolled in college she decided to pursue a degree in law.

“I knew I loved to read and analyze things, so law seemed to be the right fit for me. I grew up in Texas, and attended law school in Missouri.

“I think this career is ever changing, and it forces you to change with the times. You have to be adaptable and always have an open mind.”

Atty. Johnson-Velez said there is a big connection between law and politics, ad that goes with the idea of the separation of the three levels of government.

“You have to always be very attentive to what’s going on around you.

“As far as the future is concerned, I try not to plan too far ahead, and I just remain open and evaluate opportunities as they come along. I also try to stay very objective.”

Monday, June 24^th, Atty. Johnson-Velez will be officially sworn in as president.

The Tampa Housing Authority will host a meeting to discuss homelessness affecting veterans in the Tampa Bay area. The meeting will take place on Tuesday, June 25^th from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., at the main administrative offices of the Tampa Housing Authority, 5301 West Cypress Street.

In an effort to stop homelessness among veterans in the Tampa Bay area, the City of Tampa was selected as the site for the “Rapid Results Veterans Boot Camp.” As a participant of the “boot camp” the Housing Authority hopes to actively solicit the assistance of local property owners who are willing to lease his/her readily pre-inspected property to house Vets in need.

A town hall meeting discussing ways to combat homelessness among service men and women within the Bay area will be held on Please RSVP to Margaret Jones by emailing margaret.jones@thafl.com. 

The Housing Authority has successfully partnered with other agencies and community organizations that openly and honestly share in the successes, strategic plans and program designs used to harness the true power of the VASH (Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing) program.

This platform was made possible through organizations such as the 100,000 Homes Campaign, which is a grassroots campaign to end homelessness among the country’s service men and women.

“We have a responsibility to those who have risked their lives for our freedom,” Margaret Jones, Director of Assisted Housing/Section 8 said.

“The number of homeless Vets in the Bay area should be a definite concern of the community in which we live. It will take all of us to help make this problem go away; we owe it to them.”

In 2010, the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH) released “Opening Doors” which is the nation’s first comprehensive strategy to prevent and end homelessness.

“Opening Doors” serves as a roadmap for joint action by the 19 USICH member agencies along with local and state partners in the public and private sectors. The organization’s plan puts the country on a path to end Veteran and chronic homelessness by 2015; as well as ending homelessness among children, families and youth by 2020.

Anyone planning to attend the meeting is requested to RSVP Ms. Jones at  HYPERLINK “mailto:margaret.jones@thafl.com” margaret.jones@thafl.com.

Former Mortgage Company Employee Sentenced To 4 Years In $2.2 Million Fraud

On Wednesday, U. S. Judge Elizabeth A. Kovachevich sentenced a Tampa wife and mother to four years in federal prison. A former employee of a mortgage services company, the woman pleaded guilty to federal charges of theft in April.

Mrs. Michelle Guy was also ordered to forfeit more than 400 expensive purses, shoes, sunglasses, electronics, and other clothing traceable to proceeds from the theft.

Mrs. Guy was also ordered to serve 100 hours of community service and to pay $2,280,263.17 in restitution to her former employee, HSBC Bank.

Her husband, Kevin Guy, a former Hillsborough County employee, entered a guilty plea on February 12^th, of this year and was sentenced to 37 months in federal prison.

A veteran employee of HSBC Mortgage Services, Mrs. Guy, 40, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud, and mail fraud.

According to court documents, between February 2001 and August 2011, Mrs. Guy worked in various capacities within the company. Around January 2007, through November 2011, she is accused of conspiring with other individuals, including her husband, Kevin, to defraud HSBC Mortgage Services, Inc., and HSBC Bank, of more than $2,216,776.12, in American Express Gift Cards, AMEX gift checks, and store gift cards.

Mrs. Guy, who did not have a criminal record, was facing 30 years in prison on each charge. Kevin Guy was facing 5 years in prison.

Judge Kovachevich allowed her to attend one more out-of-state sports event her daughter is involved in, but refused to stagger her sentence so that she or her husband would be able to care for their juvenile daughters.

Ex-Bank Vice President Sentenced To 2 Years In Federal Prison

A former Vice President of a local bank who pleaded guilty to committing wire fraud has been sentenced to two years in federal prison. U. S. District Judge Steven D. Merryday also issued a money judgment against her in the amount of in the amount of $824,301.57.

According to court documentation, Ms. Susan Emily Jones, 50, served as the Vice President and Senior Business Director of Citicorp Services, Inc. Among her responsibilities were managing its employees and operations.

Officials said in court documents that beginning in November 2003 through January 2010, admitted to falsely and fraudulently leading Citicorp Services, Inc. employees to believe that she was authorized to make certain expenditures of company funds.

She then misappropriated the funds for her personal enrichment. She is accused of using the money to pay for season tickets for Tampa Bay Buccaneer football games, personal credit card expenses, and charitable contributions.

Ms. Jones also donated more than $95,000 to her church, Exciting Central Tampa Baptist Church, where Pastor Jeffery Singletary is the pastor.

When contacted by the Sentinel, Pastor Singletary declined to make a comment or the sentencing or whether the church would be responsible for repaying the money.

A spokesperson for the U. S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida said the Forfeiture Unit of the U. S. Attorney’s Office had not decided if they would seek restitution from third parties.

Court documents stated Ms. Jones misappropriated $824,301.57, using interstate wire transmissions.

Nearly two months ago, on April 28^th, shortly before 12 noon, the Florida Highway Patrol investigated a traffic accident that resulted in the death of the passenger. The driver of the vehicle was arrested Thursday and faces several charges.

According to the Florida Highway Patrol, the accident occurred on April 28^th at the intersection of Nebraska and Fletcher Avenue. Jamie Marquios Coffey, 29, was driving a 2006 Dodge Magnum. His passenger was 24-year-old Christina Stoddard, of Brooksville.

Coffey was traveling north bound in the outside lane on Nebraska Avenue. As the vehicle approached the traffic light at Fletcher, it turned red, police said.

Coffey allegedly failed to stop and collided with a 1992 Jaguar driven by David Ashwood, of Tampa. Coffey’s vehicle rotated clockwise on impact and overturned several times. Police said Ms. Stoddard or Coffey were not wearing seat belts. Ms. Stoddard was thrown from the vehicle as it flipped.

Ms. Stoddard was transported to Tampa General Hospital, where she was admitted with serious injuries. She died on April 30^th.

Coffey also received serious injuries from the accident, but recovered. Ashwood was transported to St. Joseph’s Hospital, where he was treated for minor injuries.

Following their investigation, Coffey was arrested Thursday morning around 10 a.m. He was charged with DUI Manslaughter, Vehicular Homicide, DWLSR (driving with license suspended or revoked) Habitual Traffic Violator) resulting in death, DUI Property Damage, and DUI Bodily Injury.

Police said at the time of the accident Coffey’s BAC (blood alcohol content) was determined to be 0.188.