ORLANDO, Fla. — Joel Greenberg, the former Seminole County tax collector who pleaded guilty to six federal crimes in May, has asked a judge to delay his sentencing until March 2022 as he continues to cooperate with federal authorities.
Greenberg is currently slated to be sentenced Nov. 18. But in a newly filed motion, his attorney Fritz Scheller said that Greenberg’s cooperation with investigators, which was a condition of his plea deal “cannot be completed prior to the time of his sentencing.”
“The parties expect that Mr. Greenberg will participate in additional proffers, and a continuance would provide Mr. Greenberg with additional time to do so prior to his sentencing,” the motion states.
According to Scheller, federal prosecutors have said they will not oppose the sentencing delay, which increases the likelihood it will be granted.
This would be the second continuance of Greenberg’s sentencing, which was initially scheduled for Aug. 19 before being delayed to November, also at the request of his defense counsel and for similar reasons.
Greenberg faces a mandatory minimum of 12 years in federal prison on sex trafficking, stalking, bribery and other offenses, but prosecutors have indicated they will recommend a lesser sentence if Greenberg provides substantial assistance.
The investigation began with Greenberg’s embezzlement of public funds for a cryptocurrency scheme but has reportedly widened to target everything from public corruption concerning medical marijuana policy in Tallahassee to possible sex trafficking crimes by his associates.
Among those reported to be in the crosshairs of investigators is Greenberg’s friend U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, with authorities probing whether Gaetz paid for sex with a 17-year-old girl who Greenberg has confessed to trafficking. Gaetz has adamantly denied any wrongdoing.
According to his plea deal, Greenberg admitted to paying more than $70,000 over two years to women for sex, many of whom he met on so-called “sugar daddy” websites. That’s how he first encountered the 17-year-old, though Greenberg told investigators she claimed to be 18.
The deal said Greenberg admitted that he would invite the minor and others to meet and have sex, with himself and others, at hotels around Central Florida, often supplying the girl and other attendees with ecstasy.
Greenberg also confessed to embezzling large sums of tax office money to enrich himself with Bitcoin, using office resources to make himself fake ID cards and claiming more than $400,000 in fraudulent COVID-19 relief loans — while bribing a federal employee to approve them.
Greenberg is being held in the Orange County Jail.
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