Operation Crystal Ball

To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Florida Sunshine Law, I hereby request the following records:

A copy of all documents from any investigation files—including video recordings, audio recordings, and photos—related to Operation Crystal Ball, an investigation that took place from about 2007 to 2011, which was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division, U.S. Secret Service's South Florida Organized Fraud Task Force, and the Fort Lauderdale Police Department.

According to a press release issued by the U.S. Department of Justice's U.S. Attorney's office for the Southern District of Florida on August 16, 2011, Operation Crystal Ball led to a 61-count indictment. The people charged in the indictment were Rose Marks, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida and New York, New York; Nancy Marks, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida and New York, New York; Cynthia Miller, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Rosie Marks, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Victoria Eli, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida and Secaucus, New Jersey; Vivian Marks, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Ricky Marks, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida and New York, New York; Michael Marks, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Donnie Eli, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida and New York, New York; and Peter Wolofsky, of Boca Raton, Florida.

On September 19, 2003, during a court testimony for U.S. Government vs. Rose Marks (Case No. 11-80072-CR-MARRA), Detective Charlie Stacks (then an officer for the Fort Lauderdale Police Department) who was involved in Operation Crystal Ball, stated that the investigation included audiotape-recorded conversations with victims including Jude Deveraux (aka Jude Montassir), recorded conversations between victims and suspects and targets of the conversation, recorded conversations between Jude Deveraux (aka Jude Montassir) and Rose Marks, recorded conversations between undercover officers and targets of the investigation, thousands of photos taken by Stacks, a videotape of footage captured in an undercover apartment with an informant inside. Please include any of these recordings that are in the Fort Lauderdale Police Department's files.

On September 19, 2003, during a court testimony for U.S. Government vs. Rose Marks (Case No. 11-80072-CR-MARRA), IRS agent Beth Watts stated that as a part of Operation Crystal Ball, she was present during an execution of a search warrant of Rose Marks’ home at 1319 Seminole Drive in August 2011. These materials included written checks, emails, and other documents. Please include any of these recordings that are in the Fort Lauderdale Police Department's files.

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 10 business days.

Sincerely,

Jennings Brown