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Dale Holness Campaign Guru Omar Smith Pleads Guilty To Federal Fraud Charges

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Omar Smith

Omar Miguel Smith, a longtime political operative of former Broward County Commissioner Dale Holness, pled guilty on Friday to Federal charges related to COVID-19 relief fraud. REDBROWARD first reported on the suspicious Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan Smith received last year. Smith obtained $212,500 for his single person company, A Star For I, Inc.

Smith faces up to thirty years in prison.

Here’s the press release from the United States Attorney’s Office:

Miami, Fl. –Today 42-year-old Royal Palm Beach, Florida resident Omar Smith pled guilty in South Florida federal court to lying on a coronavirus relief loan application and fraudulently obtaining hundreds of thousands of dollars intended to help small businesses financially survive the Covid-19 pandemic.

According to the information to which he pled guilty, in June 2020, Smith applied for a $212,500 forgivable, federally guaranteed Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan on behalf of A Star For I, Inc., a Florida company that he owned. It is alleged that to justify the requested loan amount, Smith claimed in the on-line loan application, and through supporting fraudulent payroll tax forms, that his company employed 30 people and spent an average of $85,000 each month on payroll. In fact, A Star For I, Inc had zero employees and no payroll expenses. A bank in Utah approved A Star For I, Inc.’s PPP loan application based on the lies and wired $212,500 to the company’s bank account in Florida, says the information.

Once the money hit the bank account in July 2020, Smith spent the next few months creating a paper trail to make it appear as if A Star For I, Inc. in fact had employees and was spending the PPP money on legitimate, approved expenses, it is alleged. According to the information, Smith issued checks from the company bank account made out to others who did little or no work for A Star For I, Inc.

Smith faces up to thirty years in prison and a fine of the greater of twice the gross gain or twice the gross loss or $1,000,000. United States District Judge Robin Rosenberg will sentence Smith on a date and time to be announced.

Smith has worked on political campaigns in South Florida.

Juan Antonio Gonzalez, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Jay Bernardo, Acting Special Agent in Charge, FBI Miami, announced the charges.

FBI Miami investigated this case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Kaplan is prosecuting it.

CONSPIRACY: Charging Docs List “Co-Conspirators,” May Signal Omar Smith’s Cooperation In Ongoing Federal Investigations

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Omar Smith

Federal prosecutors allege Omar Miguel Smith, Dale Holness’ longtime campaign guru, had help in his conspiracy to fraudulently obtain a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) COVID-19 relief loan, charging documents show. These same documents may signal that Smith is cooperating with Federal authorities in ongoing investigations. On Monday, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida charged Smith with conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud. If convicted, Smith faces up to thirty years in Federal prison.

In charging documents filed in U.S. Federal Court, prosecutors allege “co-conspirators” assisted Omar Smith in fraudulently obtaining a $215,500 PPP loan for his Florida company A Star For I, Inc. in June 2020. Prosecutors allege Smith agreed to pay 20% of the PPP loan to a co-conspirator for help obtaining the loan. On June 1, 2020 Omar Smith submitted an online loan application prepared by his co-conspirator.

According to the U.S. Attorney, “the loan application falsely stated that A Star For I had 30 employees and had an average monthly payroll of $85,000 a month.” To support these bogus claims, Smith submitted false IRS documents prepared by his co-conspirator that “falsely stated that in the first quarter of 2019 A Star For I paid wages of $255,000 and had withheld from those wages federal income tax of $24,040, social security tax of $31,620, and Medicare tax of $7,395.”

The PPP loan was approved one day later and $215,500 was transferred to the A Star For I bank account. Prosecutors state Smith transferred $42,500 to his co-conspirator on June 10, 2020 as payment for obtaining the PPP loan.

Between June 2020 and October 2020, Federal prosecutors allege Omar Smith “began issuing checks to persons in order to make it appear as if A Star For I had full-time employees and was complying with the conditions of the PPP loan.” Prosecutors claim “the persons receiving the checks did little, if any, work for A Star For I.”

Prosecutors have not named Smith’s co-conspirators.

REDBROWARD was first to report on Omar Smith’s suspect PPP loan in August 2020.

During the same time period, REDBROWARD exposed a similar suspect PPP loan obtained by Damara Holness, daughter of former Broward County Commissioner Dale Holness.

Like Smith, Damara Holness used false documents to claim her Florida company employed workers with a hefty payroll when in reality, Holness Consulting Inc. had no employees. Using false payroll records, Damara Holness fraudulently obtained a $300,000 PPP loan.

Also like Omar Smith, Damara Holness wrote checks to associates who cashed the checks and returned the majority of the money to Holness. Prosecutors alleged Holness used dozens of people in this scheme. Last month, Damara Holness started a 20 month prison sentence in Mariana, Florida.

WAIVER OF INDICTMENT

Included in the charging documents filed Monday is a “waiver of indictment” which reads:

“I understand that I have been accused of one or more offenses punishable by imprisonment for more than one year. I was advised in open court of my rights and the nature of the proposed charges against me.

After receiving this advice, I waive my right to prosecution by indictment and consent to prosecution by information.“

In cases where punishment may be longer than one year, Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure require a defendant be indicted by a grand jury. According to Federal criminal defense lawyers, Prosecutors may ask a defendant to waive the indictment requirement as part of a plea agreement which includes defendant’s cooperation in building cases against co-conspirators or other potential defendants.

It is unclear if Omar Smith is co-operating with Federal authorities. Damara Holness signed a similar waiver but a year later, prosecutors told a Federal Judge that Holness never co-operated and never revealed the whereabouts of $181,000 in cash.

Unlike Damara Holness, Omar Smith may have information that goes beyond PPP loan fraud.

As REDBROWARD documented for nearly ten years, Omar Smith played a major role in Dale Holness campaign operations. Smith helped form numerous controversial political action committees which aided Holness and his political allies. Smith used committees and other electoral processes to collect votes for Dale Holness and other favored candidates. Holness and Smith played key roles in the 2020 election which saw victories by Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony, Broward Supervisor of Elections Joe Scott, and others.

Additionally, sources tell REDBROWARD that Smith’s A Star For I company received large unapproved payments by a South Florida municipality for work he may not have performed. One source claims a city employee, who is Smith’s close, personal friend, arranged the payment.

More to come…