Miami Criminal Lawyer Blog

According to a recently discovered Miami Beach police report, Vince Shlomi, 44, better known as the ShamWow guy, was arrested for aggravated battery at the luxurious Setai hotel in South Beach back on February 7, 2009. Apparently, Shlomi met Sasha Lenea Harris, 26, his alleged victim and co-defendant, at Luigi's nightclub located at 2377 Collins Avenue in South Beach. The new friends returned to Shlomi's room at the Setai where Harris allegedly propositioned him to have "straight sex" for a small $1,000 fee. It seems the world's oldest profession is surviving the global recession just fine.

After returning to Shlomi's hotel room, this quintessentially South Beach romance turned violent. According to Miami Beach police, Shlomi tried to kiss Harris at which point she bit down very hard on his tounge. Shlomi stated that he was forced to punch Harris in the face several times in order to get her to release his tounge, resulting in multiple lacerations and facial fractures. She fled the room and called Miami Beach police who arrested both the alleged "john" and prostitute for aggravated battery.

Continue reading " South Beach Prostitute Accuses Vince Shlomi (AKA The ShamWow Guy) Of Aggravated Battery " »

Davie police officer Stephen Olenchak, 34, was arrested Thursday and charged with two counts of sexual battery without consent on a girl over 12 years old for allegedly raping a teenage girl while his wife was lying unconscious next to them. According to police, the unidentified teenage girl was at Olenchak's house on March 22nd and had watched the HBO television show Big Love with him and his wife prior to the assault. Olenchak's relationship to the girl is unknown, and so it is unclear as to why the teenage girl was at his house in the first place.

According to the teen, Olenchak served the girl and his wife several drinks that made them extremely drowsy. Police suspect that he may have intentionally drugged them in order to carry out his criminal assault. After serving the drinks and watching the television show, the police report states that Olenchak then grabbed the intoxicated girl from behind and raped her... all while his intoxicated wife slept nearby. Because of the drinks, the girl was not coherent enough to fight off Olenchak or call out to his wife for help.

Continue reading " Davie Police Officer Accused Of Raping Teen " »

Miami Beach police arrested Brazilian born artist Romero Britto on Thursday morning and charged him with DUI. According to police, Britto was driving his Bentley southbound on Washington Avenue at about 3am and was swerving between lanes. Miami Beach police spokeswoman, Detective Jenny Velazquez, stated that Britto's blood alcohol level was about twice the legal limit, although she declined to release his specific blood alcohol results. Romero posted a $1,000 cash bond to secure his release from jail pending his criminal case.

Britto has been described as a neo-pop artist, painter, sculptor, and serigrapher. His work is very contemporary and is a combination of cubism, graffiti, and pop art. He currently resides in Miami, Florida, and has two art galleries, one on Lincoln Road in South Beach and the other in the Midtown Miami.

Continue reading " Miami Beach Police Arrest Artist Romero Britto For DUI " »

Deputies from the Broward Sheriff's Office were searching on Monday afternoon for two men involved in a violent Tamarac burglary. The crime took place at the Arbor Keys apartment complex, 4449 Treehouse Lane, in eastern Tamarac. Despite an intense police search, the burglary suspects were still on the loose as of Tuesday morning.

The man living in the apartment, Christopher Roberts, 29, returned home on Monday afternoon at about 1:30pm and actually had the misfortune of interrupting the burglary in progress. As Roberts walked in to find a man ransacking his apartment, a second man clubbed him on the back with a wooden beam and knocked him to the ground. The burglars then tipped a large entertainment center onto Roberts and continued to ransack his home before fleeing. Roberts was transported to Florida Medical Center in Lauderdale Lakes for treatment, but fortunately did not appear to have any life-threatening injuries.

Continue reading " Broward Police Seek Tamarac Burglary Suspects " »

The U.S. Department of Justice, in a 35 page report issued this week, dealt a serious blow to a controversial Florida state law regulating travel to Cuba. The law in question... the Sellers of Travel Act of 2008... was touted by proponents as a "homeland security" issue because it regulated travel agencies that sold trips to five so-called terrorist nations: Cuba, Iran, Iraq, North Korea, and Syria. It required any such travel agencies to post a $250,000 bond with the state and to pay up to $2,500 in annual registration fees. However, opponents to the Florida law decried the legislation as an unjust and politically-motivated "witch-hunt."

Department of Justice officials were forced to weigh in on the matter after more than a dozen Florida travel agencies filed a federal lawsuit against the state to prevent the controversial law from going into effect. After the lawsuit was filed in June of last year, U.S. District Court Judge Alan S. Gold ordered a temporary injunction in July to have time to solicit a legal opinion from Department of Justice attorneys.

Continue reading " Federal Ruling Offers New Hope For Travel To Cuba " »

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have broken up an internet prostitution ring that had been operating for months between Detroit and the South Florida area. On Thursday, Rafael "Marco" Bernabe-Caballero, 32, was charged in federal court with multiple counts of sex trafficking with force. With charges that serious, he will definitely need the services of an experienced federal criminal defense attorney.

This Miami criminal defense attorney has learned that according to the federal indictment, Bernabe-Caballero owned and operated the website www.miamiultimate.com for about 20 months from March 2007 through November 2008. He is accused of using the website to market Eastern European women for prostitution purposes to "johns" from around the country. Bernabe-Caballero allegedly recruited women under the guise of running a legitimate escort service and then used threats of physical harm and even death to force them to perform sexual services on his many clients.

Continue reading " South Florida Internet Prostitution Ring Busted By Immigration And Customs Enforcement (ICE) Agents " »

This Miami criminal lawyer has learned that an unnamed source with knowledge is reporting that Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donté Stallworth, 28, was driving under the influence of alcohol when he struck and killed Mario Reyes, 59, on Miami's MacArthur Causeway last Saturday morning. In addition, WSVN-FOX was reporting on Thursday afternoon that Stallworth's blood alcohol content was 0.12 grams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood. However, Miami Beach police would not yet confirm that Stallworth's blood alcohol level was above the 0.08 legal limit.

Although criminal charges have not yet been filed, Stallworth could still be facing charges as serious as DUI manslaughter or vehicular manslaughter. Under Florida law, both DUI manslaughter and vehicular homicide are 2nd degree felonies punishable by up to 15 years in state prison.

Continue reading " DUI Update: Source Says Donté Stallworth Was Driving Drunk At Time Of Fatal Accident " »

A drug dealing gang based in the Hialeah area has been broken up by police, but several suspected gang members are still on the loose. According to Hialeah police, a group of about 15 suspected gang members spent much of 2008 selling cocaine and marijuana near the William Lehman Adult Day Care Center on West 10th Avenue and near McDonald Park on West 12th Avenue in Hialeah. Although 11 of the suspected drug dealing gang members have been arrested, Hialeah police are still searching for four more suspected gang members and have now turned to the public for assistance.

Police say that many of the suspected drug dealing gang members grew up in the Hialeah area and still live in the neighborhood. It is also believed that many of them have been committing drug offenses and other crimes since they were juveniles.

Continue reading " Drug Dealing Gang Broken Up By Hialeah Police " »

Miami Beach police arrested Gabriel Nock, 27, on a Broward County murder charge in South Beach on Monday. Nock has been charged with 1st degree murder for the killing of Larry Ellison, 68, who was found strangled in his Wilton Manors home on March 10.

After questioning, Nock admitted to strangling Ellison in his home while robbing him. He also admitted to driving away in the victim's Infinity SUV along with his wallet, computer, and other electronics. Barring a serious mistake by the police, Nock's statements will be admissible against him in a future criminal trial and could make for a difficult criminal defense case.

Continue reading " Miami Beach Police Arrest Broward Murder Suspect " »

According to the Miami Herald, the DUI blood test results for Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte' Stallworth should be available soon. Stallworth, 28, was driving his Bentley eastbound on Miami's MacArthur Causeway last Saturday at about 7am when he struck and killed Mario Reyes as he was crossing the street. Reyes, 59, had just left his job as an overnight crane operator and was attempting to cross the street to catch the bus home.

Although he was questioned and released by Miami Beach police, Stallworth may still face criminal charges. If his DUI blood test results reveal the presence of alcohol or drugs, Stallworth could be facing the criminal charge of DUI manslaughter. However, even without a positive test result, he may still be facing criminal charges such as vehicular manslaughter and reckless driving. Under Florida law, DUI manslaughter and vehicular manslaughter are both 2nd degree felonies punishable by up to 15 years in state prison.

Continue reading " Miami DUI Blood Test Results For Donte' Stallworth Expected Soon " »