FLORIDA – A Florida man has pled guilty to a hate-fueled robbery and kidnapping spree that reportedly occurred over two weeks late last year.
Stevenson Charles, 21, of Miami, allegedly carjacked, kidnapped, and robbed five victims, said the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida (USAO).
Charles pled guilty in South Florida federal court to 17 counts of violence, the USAO said. He faces up to life in prison.
As part of his guilty plea, Charles admitted that from October 23 to November 6, 2022, he targeted gay men on Grindr, a social networking application for gay and bisexual people.
According to the USAO, in October 2022, Charles reportedly invited a man he met online to Charles’s Miami home for sex. After the man arrived, Charles is said to have pulled a gun on him. Charles allegedly had the victim drive to two automated teller machines, withdraw over $1,000, and give it to him.
The following month, Charles reportedly invited a man he met on Grindr to a Miami location for sex. When the man arrived, Charles is said to have pulled a gun on him and demanded his cellular telephone.
Charles scrolled through the pictures on the victim’s phone, some of which showed the victim with other men, the USAO said. Charles reportedly hit the victim with a gun several times, saying he would kill everyone like the victim.
According to the USAO, Charles forced the man to drive him to retail pharmacy stores, where Charles is alleged to have purchased items with the victim’s credit card.
Also, in November 2022, Charles met a different man on Grindr and reportedly arranged to meet him in Dania Beach for sex. Once there, Charles allegedly pulled a gun on the man and told him that he hated gay people and believed they should be punished.
Charles reportedly forced the victim to drive to a home in Aventura, where the victim had been living with a couple. When they arrived, Charles is said to have pointed a gun at the couple and demanded money from them, the USAO said.
Charles allegedly forced the group into the victim’s car and instructed them to drive to automated teller machines, withdraw over $1,500, and give it to him.
Charles had the group drive back to the Aventura home, where he reportedly stole the couple’s phones.
According to the USAO, Charles left with the man he had met on Grindr, instructing the victim to drive to their initial meeting spot in Dania Beach.
When they neared a secluded area by some railroad tracks, Charles allegedly shot the man several times, including once in the head. Despite the injuries, the victim was able to call 911 and survived.
Law enforcement officers said they located Charles in Georgia and arrested him.
U.S. District Judge Paul C. Huck will sentence Charles on April 24 in Miami.
Charles faces up to life in prison and may be subject to a hate crime enhancement under the federal sentencing guidelines.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and acting Special Agent in Charge Maged Behnam of FBI Miami announced the conviction.
This was a joint investigation between the FBI Miami Field Office, the City of Miami Police Department, the Miami-Dade Police Department, the Aventura Police Department, and the Broward Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Elena Smukler and Dayron Silverio of the Special Prosecutions Section are prosecuting the case.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 22-cr-20596.
