Detectives from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office arrested a Lakeland man Tuesday, April 1, 2025 for money laundering after it was discovered that he tried to hide more than $800-thousand in proceeds from illegal gambling games that he organized.
39-year old James Patrick Kerr was charged with three counts of Fraud-Money Laundering in Excess of $100,000 (F1).
“One of our undercover detectives infiltrated Kerr’s illegal poker games that were being conducted in the Winter Haven area. As the saying goes, ‘follow the money,’ and that’s exactly what detectives did. They discovered that Kerr would make multiple transactions among various bank accounts, with the purpose of trying to hide his illicit earnings.” – Grady Judd, Sheriff
The investigation revealed that Kerr’s fraudulent activities occurred over three years, in an attempt to conceal a total of $833,478 in illegal gambling money.
· 2021: $408,878
· 2022: $289,600
· 2023: $135,000
Detectives located Kerr at his attorney’s office in Lakeland, but he refused to speak with detectives about the investigation.
Kerr was arrested and taken to the Sheriff’s Processing Center and booked-in his charges.
