Detectives from the Volusia Sheriff’s Office (VSO) have arrested 26-year-old Keith Merard from South Florida for his involvement in a sophisticated scam in which individuals impersonated Volusia County officials to defraud vendors. Over approximately 11 months, the scam involved contacting hundreds of vendors to establish lines of credit and make fraudulent purchases. While many vendors became suspicious and rejected orders, some transactions succeeded. In August and September, the group acquired over $7,000 worth of reusable respirators, which were shipped to an address in Miami.
The scam escalated in October when a company specializing in Starlink kits grew suspicious of a large order allegedly from Volusia County purchasing director Pam Wilsky. Direct communication with Wilsky confirmed it was a scam, revealing the company had previously fallen victim to a similar fraud, shipping 15 Starlink kits worth around $48,000 to a storage unit in Davie without payment. The investigation advanced significantly when a VSO detective, collaborating with the company and South Florida law enforcement, traced the activation of one of the stolen Starlinks to an apartment in Miramar on October 31.
This led them to Merard, who lived at the address and rented the storage unit where the Starlinks were delivered. Surveillance footage showed Merard moving the boxes from the storage unit into a black Ford SUV. Following this evidence, a search warrant was executed at Merard’s Miramar apartment on Monday, leading to his arrest. Merard admitted to his role in the scam, confessing to receiving fraudulently obtained goods, redistributing them, and converting the proceeds into Bitcoin, which was transferred to unidentified overseas accomplices.
Merard now faces charges at the Broward County Jail, including organized scheme to defraud and criminal use of personal identification information. His arrest highlights the efforts of local law enforcement to dismantle fraud networks exploiting business trust and interstate commerce for illegal gains. The investigation continues, with authorities encouraging other potentially affected vendors to come forward with relevant information to help dismantle this criminal enterprise. This ongoing effort aims to prevent further scams and bring justice to those impacted by this elaborate fraud.
