Press Release
COURT DEPARTS UPWARD TO SENTENCE ILLEGAL RE-ENTRY TO 60 MONTHS IN PRISON
March 11, 2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Michael Rozos, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Field Office Director for the Office of Detention and Removal in Florida, announced the sentencing of defendant Donovan Wayne Tucker, 42, a Jamaican national who resided in Canada most of his adult life. Tucker was sentenced last Thursday, March 6, 2008 to 60 months’ imprisonment.
Upon motion by the United States Attorney’s Office, the court departed upward from a sentencing guideline of 12 to 18 months, and found that the defendant’s criminal history category substantially under-represented the seriousness of the defendant’s criminal history or the likelihood that the defendant would commit other crimes. The court departed upward to the maximum sentence based on the defendants numerous Canadian criminal convictions, his use of aliases, his history of absconding on bonds to avoid prosecution in connection with nine arrests dating as far back as 1988, and his fraudulent acquisition and use of the identification of others.
According to court records, the defendant was arrested on October 1, 2007 following an anonymous tip that Tucker would be attempting to board a flight for Las Vegas from Fort Lauderdale International Airport using the identity of “Jason Camberg.” At the time of his arrest, Tucker was in possession of a birth certificate and a Florida driver’s license in the name of “Jason Camberg.” Tucker had been ordered deported in absentia in May of 2000 when he failed to appear for an immigration deportation proceeding and absconded on a $50,000 bond. He was subsequently arrested in Miami in December of 2005 and was physically deported to Jamaica on April 5, 2006.
Tucker had been numerous convictions in Canada including for assault causing bodily harm, extortion, assault with a weapon, living off monies earned by prostitution, breaking and entering, compelling persons to engage in prostitution, and aggravated assault. In addition, according to court statements made in open court, investigators linked Tucker to nine arrests in various cities across the United States, including New York, San Francisco, Albany, Las Vegas, and Camden County, Georgia on various different charges. Tucker was able to avoid prosecution on all of these charges by using assumed aliases and absconding on bonds before authorities could verify his true identity.
Mr. Acosta commended the investigative efforts of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department of Homeland Security. This case was prosecuted by Scott Behnke, Assistant United States Attorney.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
Technical comments about this website can be e-mailed to the Webmaster. PLEASE NOTE: The United States Attorney's Office does not respond to non-technical inquiries made to this website. If you wish to make a request for information, you may contact our office at 305-961-9001, or you may send a written inquiry to the United States Attorney's Office, Southern District of Florida, 99 NE 4th Street, Miami, Fl. 33132.