Man shot by federal agents in Coral Gables charged with scamming the elderly

Federal authorities have arrested a Miami-Dade man who was shot and wounded by agents in Coral Gables last week.

Johnny Watson, 44, appeared in federal court on Friday, one week after he was wounded and his cohort, Brandon Wimberly, was fatally shot as agents tried to stop them as they drove in a minivan. Agents with U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) opened fire after Wimberly “brandished” a firearm, the agency said earlier.

Both men had been under investigation on suspicion of financial crimes, authorities said. A criminal complaint unsealed on Friday afternoon revealed more details as Watson was charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud — accused of conning elderly people into sending them packages of money.

He’ll be held at Miami’s Federal Detention Center, at least until Wednesday, when another hearing is held on whether Watson should be kept behind bars before trial. Law enforcement has not revealed the extent of Watson’s injuries or how long he was hospitalized.

Scam phone calls targeting the elderly have been a persistent problem in South Florida and the United States in recent years.

According to the complaint, the probe into Watson began when a package containing $12,000 — sent by a 69-year-old Maryland woman — was intercepted at a mail sorting facility. A court-approved tracking device was placed in the package, which was then delivered to a vacant house on the 5300 block of Red Road on Feb. 12.

But parked outside, according to agents, was a gray Chrysler minivan. A man identified only as a “co-conspirator” — believed to be Wimberly — exited the van, picked up the package and got back in the van. Watson, the complaint said, was also inside.

Agents in unmarked vehicles followed the van, but it soon began driving “erratically, making multiple U-turns and abrupt turns” — signaling that the surveillance had been spotted.

According to the complaint, agents tried pulling the van over and there was “an encounter between law enforcement and the vehicle” and a “firearm was later located inside the vehicle.” Watson was in the passenger seat, the package of money on a rear seat, the complaint said.

The complaint does not give any more details on the “encounter,” or acknowledge the shooting, which is being investigated by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. It was unclear Friday if Watson would face any state or federal charges related to the shooting itself.

Agents said the money had been sent by an elderly Maryland couple that received phone calls from two people, one impersonating an attorney, another impersonating their child. “One of the two callers, or both, asked them to send the money to Miami and New Jersey,” the complaint said.

Parcel-delivery drivers also reported the van was involved in picking up or attempting to pick up packages sent to other locations. In one of those cases, a woman had sent $8,000 to Miami after a man claimed her grandson had been injured in a car crash and needed the money for legal services.

The complaint said phone records tie Watson and Wimberly to the scams.

Family described Wimberly as a father of two girls. “We want to know what transpired the day of the shooting,” his younger brother told WTVJ-NBC6. “We want to know, did he shoot? What led to the shooting? What happened? What was the cause of the shooting?”

Wimberly was convicted in Miami-Dade of selling cocaine and giving a false name during an arrest in 2006. Other arrests for illegal firearm possession in 2012, and armed robbery in 2003, did not result in convictions after prosecutors dropped the charges, records show.

Watson had a more extensive history. Over decades, he’d been arrested for charges including murder, aggravated assault with a firearm and armed burglary, cases that were all dropped. He spent more than a year in prison for selling cocaine in Manatee County, records show.

This story was originally published February 19, 2021 at 4:43 PM.