14 DAY TRIAL // Miami police officers Malinzky Bazile, 28, and Vital Frederick, 26, have been arrested on suspicion of tax refund fraud and identity theft. 27-year-old Bernard Beliard, a State Corrections officer of the South Florida Reception Center has been arrested in a separate case.
According to authorities, Bazile has been charged with access device fraud, aggravated identity theft, and use of a computer to facilitate the access device fraud.
Frederick is accused of aggravated identity theft and access device fraud. He has also been charged with extortion under color of official right.
The complaint filed against Beliard charges him with access device fraud and aggravated identity theft.
The suspects used their official law enforcement position to gain access to personal information such as names, dates of birth and social security numbers. Beliard and Frederick are believed to have sold the information to an FBI source who said he would use it to file fraudulent tax returns.
Bazile, on the other hand, stole information from the city’s official computers and used it to participate in a tax fraud scheme.
“Identity theft and stolen identity refund fraud are the fastest growing crimes in South Florida, spreading like a virus. The perpetrators of this type of fraud have been as diverse as the victims they prey upon,” US Attorney Wifredo Ferrer stated.
“To date, we have prosecuted Social Security office employees, hospital employees, clinic workers, former NFL players, gang members, and violent criminals, to name a few. Today, we sadly add law enforcement to the list of thieves.”
Acting SAC William Maddalena for FBI Miami noted, “Lawmen have a great responsibility and therefore must be held to a higher standard. The FBI’s Miami Area Corruption Task Force was assembled and designed to ensure that these high standards of integrity are met and maintained.”