SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. — Former Seminole County tax collector Joel Greenberg is facing allegations of child sex trafficking and using his job to get information related to his “sugar daddy” relationships, according to a new federal indictment.
According to the indictment, Greenberg used his access to a state driver’s license database to get the personal information of individuals “with whom (he) was engaged in ‘sugar daddy’ relationships.”
READ: Former Seminole County Tax Collector accused of creating fake IDs, documents say
The latest accusations state that Greenberg used the permissions he had as tax collector to create fake driver’s licenses that used his photo but another person’s personal information “to produce a false identification document to facilitate his efforts to engage in commercial sex acts,” the indictment states.
The indictment says between May and November of 2017, Greenberg used that information to solicit a minor between the ages of 14 and 17.
“We deny the allegations and we look forward to the trial,” Greenberg’s attorney Mark Horowitz said in a statement.
Chairman Jay Zembower of the Seminole County Board of Commissioners said while Greenberg will have his day in court to prove whether the charges are true or not, they are moving ahead with their forensic audit of Greenberg’s office.
“It’s just not right and that public trust is violated unfortunately and we have to do what’s necessary to instill confidence back in the public,” he said.
Florida A&M University law professor Jeremy Levitt said breaking federal law by using interstate communication is the crux of the case.
But he said all of the charges stem back from the investigation into Greenberg’s alleged stalking of a political opponent.
“Mr. Greenberg attempted to use race as a dividing line to not just stalk a political opponent to make fake allegations and false allegations the individual was a white supremacist, that the individual had sexual relations with an underage minor, when it was in fact him that was enticing individuals to do that very thing,” Levitt said.
Stay tuned to Channel 9 Eyewitness News for updates.
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