A romance fraudster is in custody after her former lover accused her of stealing $850,000 worth of TrumpCoin cryptocurrency from him.
However, the scorned ex, named as Miami resident Anthony Bravo, a private investigator and a Florida congressman are now involved because the woman, 22-year-old Maissa Jebali, is an undocumented immigrant and is now in ICE custody.
If the immigration authorities follow through on President Donald Trump’s decree to deport undocumented persons as soon as possible, Jebali will be back in Tunisia with nearly one million dollars of someone else’s digital currency, private investigator David Bolton told The Independent.
Jebali was arrested and charged on February 14 with grand theft in the third degree and credit card fraud, according to a City of Miami Police Department arrest affidavit seen by The Independent.
Bravo met Jebali at a lounge and swiftly started a relationship in August 2024 that included enjoying several cruises on his yacht around South Florida.
On February 8, the duo were embroiled in a heated argument while on board Bravo’s boat. According to Bravo, the two decided to break up but he fell asleep during their conversation. During the night, Bravo says that Jebali stole his American Express card.
“Eventually in our conversation, I had fallen asleep, laying down in the bed. When I woke up, she was gone” said Bravo told NBC6.
The following morning, while checking his crypto accounts he noticed two withdrawals.
"She unlocked my phone and transferred $850,000 of Trump Coin from my phantom wallet directly into her phantom wallet", he told the NBC affiliate.
Bravo never heard from Jebali after that but charges that he did not recognize began to appear on his Amex including an Airbnb stay costing over $4,000 and a $14,000 shopping spree.
Bravo subsequently hired Bolton, who quickly located the suspect at a hotel in Miami on Valentine's Day.
A City of Miami police officer was then called to the hotel, where he spotted Jebali at the bar and approached her.
According to the affidavit, once the woman confirmed who she was, the officer informed her of the police report, to which she replied: “That loser is my ex-boyfriend. He lets me use his credit card.”
She went on to claim she had been the one to end the relationship and had no intention of returning to “live or be” with Bravo. She also told police that she did not want Bravo to know of her location.
Jebali admitted to police that she booked the Airbnb behind his back – prompting an arrest, according to the criminal complaint.
Initially, she was booked at the county jail, but within days, ICE officials took her to one of its facilities.
David Bolton spoke to The Independent Friday saying: “I’ve been doing this for 35 years. I’ve never had a case where so much evidence was provided to law enforcement yet the proper charges were not filed. And because of that, we are now in a race to beat the clock to try and prevent her from being deported with full access to the funds that she stole.”
When asked if she could potentially scramble with the money, he added: “We don’t know. According to the new immigration laws, she should be deported within the next 48 hours. We’re trying to stop that we just don’t know if we’re going to be successful or not.”
Under Trump’s new deportation ruling, ordered on January 21, the Department of Homeland Security expanded its ICE powers through a process called "expedited removal” – hastening the rapid deportation process to allow arrested undocumented migrants to be deported within a matter of days.
Previously, ICE would only enforce expedited removal against people within 100 miles of the border and within 14 days of their arrival, according to the National Immigration Law Center.
“We can get the proper charges filed and then hopefully she’ll want to make restitution or we can access the funds.”
“We don’t care about her in the end what happens to her. We just want the money.”
He insisted that Bravo’s sole intention was to try and block the deportation and get access to his funds.
If she gets deported, however, she’ll just be gone, Bolton said. And she’ll have the funds. “If she’s deported we’re out of luck.”
The private investigator shared that Republican Congressman Carlos Antonio Gimenez had been assisting with the effort to get Jebali charged and her deportation halted.
“We’re very appreciative to Congressman Gimenez, who stepped in here and has been trying to help us block the deportation.”
Jebali reportedly pleaded not guilty to the charges, and her attorney, Christopher Schisani, told NBC6 he believes she will bond out of ICE and "justice will be served."
The Independent contacted The City of Miami Police, Jebali’s attorney, Christopher Schisani, and Congressman Carlos Antonio Gimenez's Office for comment.
