Brian Brainard Wedgeworth, a man accused of swindling more than $1 million from nearly two dozen woman in eight states, pleaded guilty in Tallahassee’s federal court to 25 counts related to his romance schemes.
The charges include 14 counts of wire fraud, seven on mail fraud, aggravated identity theft and two counts of bank fraud.
Wedgeworth, 46, can receive over 100 years in prison if sentenced to the maximum penalty in each charge, said U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle Thursday.
His sentencing date was scheduled for Aug. 8.
Previous reporting on the ‘Casanova Scammer’:
Hinkle, before accepting the plea, called upon Wedgeworth to answer a series of questions in order to inform him of the right he will be forfeiting by changing his plea.
Hinkle asked Wedgeworth, who was in handcuffs, a loosely fitting T-shirt and khaki pants, if he suffered from any mental illness and whether he was coerced into a guilty plea. To both questions, he answered “No, sir” in a deep, bellowing voice.
He also asked whether Wedgeworth read the state’s statement of facts in the case and if every word of it was true
“It’s true,” he said under oath.
A history of fraud
The statement of facts, which was not immediately available and outlined the case built by state prosecutors over years, says Wedgeworth scammed at least 21 women across eight states and amassed over $1 million through years of schemes, according to Hinkle.
The scammer’s victims, many whom were not named, said he made them believe he was a single surgeon looking to settle down, according to an investigative report by Fresh Take Florida, a news service of the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications.
His romance scams, which ran from October 2016 to March 2021, have reportedly taken place over at least 10 dating platforms and roped in nine banks through false checks and wire transfers, according to court records.
Once Wedgeworth garnered the trust of his victims by meeting them in person, offering to pay off their debts and even sending fake digital presentations in an attempt to authenticate his doctor or surgeon persona, he would request thousands of dollars and sometimes luxury items like Rolex watches.
He used at least 13 aliases, most a variation of his own name. Example: Brian Mims, Brian Adams, Brian Anderson, Brian Edmonds, Brian Ammerson. He also claimed to be affiliated with at least eight different reputable hospitals.
Wedgeworth, a veteran who has an ex-wife in Tallahassee, has fraud charges going back two decades.
He has even pleaded guilty to similar charges before, including to dozens of counts of fraud and forgery in Georgia and Alabama.
When he was arrested in Tennessee last year, he was also wanted by law enforcement in Ohio and Alabama, court records showed.
Despite pleading guilty to over a dozen charges in Alabama alone, Wedgeworth seldom served a full sentence.
‘Cassanova Scammer’
He has earned the moniker the “Casanova Scammer” over accusations that he made a career of targeting women in search of romance.
These scams, which have gained a lot of attention after the “Tinder Swindler” documentary was released on Netflix in February, typically take place over online dating platforms and involve one party feigning romantic interest to earn another’s trust and access their finances.
Shimon Heyada Hayut, who called himself Simon Leviev on Tinder and was the subject of the Netflix documentary.
Hayut, like Wedgeworth, operated primarily on Match Group platforms. He made extravagant financial gestures in order to solicit future funds as favors. He had a website fraudulently linking him to a diamond tycoon and traveled across countries to visit his victims in person and authenticate his simulated identity.
Hayut is accused of scamming several women across Europe for approximately $10 million in just two years. He was sentenced to 15 months in prison in Israel. He only served five months.
Wedgeworth faces two pending cases in Alabama and Georgia related to specific instances that are included in the multi-state federal case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Keen told the judge Thursday that prosecutors in Alabama would drop charges if Wedgeworth pleaded guilty and Georgia prosecutors would wait for sentencing before making a decision to proceed.
Regardless of how much prison time Hinkle sentences Wedgeworth to, state prosecutors in Alabama and Georgia can still go through with their respective cases.
Fresh Take Florida reporter Natalia Galicza contributed to this story. Fresh Take Florida is a news service of the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications.
Contact Christopher Cann at ccann@tallahassee.com and follow @ChrisCannFL on Twitter.
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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: ‘Casanova Scammer’ pleads guilty in state-spanning romance scam
