Sheriff Kurt A. Hoffman is pleased to announce four agency members received the 2021 Task Force of the Year Award from the International Association of Financial Crimes Investigators (IAFCI).

On August 31, during the IAFCI Annual Conference in Chicago, Illinois, Detectives Rhett Campbell, Carlos Verdoni and Daniel Levanti (not pictured), along with Digital Forensic Examiner Brooke Buzzell (not pictured) were recognized for their work as members of the Tampa Bay Cyber Fraud Task Force which also included personnel from several local law enforcement agencies. In 2020, the group was instrumental in responding to CARES Act fraud, account takeovers, elder fraud, ransomware, compromised business emails, and other network intrusion investigations. In one such case, the task force discovered a company attempting to defraud Sarasota County of $3.5 million by filing fraudulent applications for COVID relief.

“Cyber-crimes often involve lengthy investigations,” commented Sheriff Hoffman. “I applaud the dedication of our detectives and civilian examiners to bring these complex cases to successful conclusions. International  recognition of their service is well-earned.”