A Texas man who posed as a highly trained special operations veteran was found guilty of defrauding millions of victims by claiming that drug cartels were targeting them and that he could protect them at a high price.
Kota Youngblood, 52, also known as Saint Jovite Youngblood, was sentenced Wednesday in Austin to 40 years in prison for defrauding 32 people of more than $12 million in a scheme dating back to at least 2010, according to the Ministry of Justice.
Youngblood, from Manor, a town about 12 miles outside Austin, convinced his victims that a Mexican drug cartel was after them and offered them and their loved ones protection in exchange for money.
During a recorded conversation with an undercover FBI agent in May 2023, Youngblood said he is currently “freelancing” for the Department of Defense, according to court documents.
He claimed to have served for 22 years in the 82nd Airborne Division and Delta Force, a highly classified and elite Army special operations force that is part of the Joint Special Operations Command, despite FBI investigators having found no military service records.
Investigators discovered that the fraudster told his victims that he could protect them and their loved ones using his skills and connections as a special operator.
“Many Youngblood victims were terrorized because they believed their families were in danger; others lost their livelihoods because of his schemes,” said FBI Special Agent Aaron Tapp.
One of his victims testified against Youngblood in federal court in Austin in August 2023, saying he had known him for about six years and that their sons were on the same hockey team.
The scammer had his son tell the victim that his father needed to talk to him about a “situation” involving his ex-wife.
Youngblood then claimed that he and his family were “in grave danger,” alleging that his ex-wife was involved with a Mexican drug cartel.
He told the victim that his ex tried to have him killed to cash in on a $6.5 million life insurance policy in his name.
Youngblood then claimed that he obtained audio of the ex-wife and cartel members hiring a hit man to kill him through a friend at the National Security Agency.
He then asked for money from the victim to protect them and his family. The victim wrote him a check for $70,000 for his fake services and later gave him two more payments of $86,000 and $83,000.
Investigators discovered that the scammer “targeted several individuals on his son’s hockey team.”
Youngblood used intermediaries between himself and his victims to conceal his activities while running his scams. According to investigators, he arranged in-person meetings and avoided discussing his plans over the phone or via email.
He also told his victims – whom he called “investors” – that the money would be “repaid with a significant return on the money.”
He accepted check payments funneled through a business partner and told his victims that the payments to protect their families would double as business investments and provide returns.
However, investigators discovered that the scammer had gambled away most of the money in Las Vegas.
“This fraudster developed close relationships with dozens of individuals and built an enormous amount of trust, seemingly only to financially destroy their lives through elaborate, deceptive misrepresentations,” said U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza.
The scammer was caught after the victim, whose son played on the same hockey team as Youngblood’s son, went to work for the FBI after never getting his money back.
Youngblood was arrested at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in July 2023 en route to Las Vegas.
The fraudster was placed in a Waco detention center and was tried in April, where he was convicted of four counts of bank fraud and one count of money laundering.
In addition to the 480 months in prison, he was ordered to pay full restitution of $12,766,384.
“The 40-year sentence that Youngblood will now serve in federal prison, along with the full restitution being returned to the victims, demonstrates the seriousness of these crimes, and I hope that the individuals and families affected by his schemes , will be able to recover from the losses they have suffered,” said Esparza.
“Thank you to our partners at the FBI for their investigative efforts that contributed immensely to this successful outcome of justice.”
