MIAMI — Federal agents arrested South Florida hip-hop artist Bankroll aboard a private jet as he was set to fly to Sint Maarten, according to newly-public court documents. He appeared in Miami federal court on Thursday, accused of a nearly $8 million tax refund fraud scheme ― and it’s not his first time in trouble with the feds.
Bankroll, also known as Walking Bankroll, is the stage name of David Edmond. His songs include “How 2 Act” and “Pesos.”
A federal criminal complaint obtained Friday by Local 10 News allege that investigators obtained key evidence tying Edmond to the scheme through his “Walkingbankroll Zoedy” Facebook account, where the 34-year-old has regularly posted pictures of private jets and luxury cars, sometimes in the same photo, along with posts mocking “broke” people.
Those documents state that Edmond, of Pembroke Pines, is facing a charge of false claims against the United States stemming from a specific $14,693 fraudulent refund submitted in September 2022. But they said the claim “arose out of a scheme” by Edmond that resulted in the submission of nearly 450 federal tax returns claiming about $7.9 million in refunds.
Investigators said in 2022, Edmond subscribed to an online database called LocatePLUS to harvest Social Security numbers. According to the complaint, the service is only supposed to be used by legitimate officials or businesses, so he created a fake company, ”Barnes and Associates Collection," in order to gain access.
Authorities said LocatePLUS suspended Edmond for excessive searches ― about 200 ― “which revealed SSNs for over 1,000 people.”
According to the complaint, a phone number listed on an application for an Employer Identification Number used by “Barnes and Associates” matched one “Walkingbankroll Zoedy” mentioned in a Facebook Messenger conversation, obtained through a warrant, as “his phone number.”
Investigators said they also tied Edmond to the scheme through a web of Yahoo and Gmail email accounts and IP address data.
Agents said an Aug. 8, 2025 border search of Edmond’s cellphones at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, conducted after he returned on a JetBlue flight from the Dominican Republic, revealed “images of driver’s licenses, passports and ledgers of” personally identifiable information.
According to the complaint, agents arrested Edmond at Miami–Opa Locka Executive Airport on Tuesday evening, having booked a private flight to Princess Juliana International Airport in Sint Maarten. He was taken into custody “after boarding the plane, but before (it) departed.”
Authorities said Edmond had about $7,650 in cash and “numerous items of what appeared to be expensive jewelry.”
He would be booked into the Broward County jail and later transferred into Federal Bureau of Prisons custody. Appearing in Miami federal court on Thursday, a judge ordered he be held on separate personal surety bonds of $500,000 and $100,000. The latter bond was signed by his girlfriend, but the former requires that he prove that the $50,000 he’d have to deposit comes from a legitimate source.
Records show he’s also restricted from selling or borrowing against a home he owns in Alabama, visiting airports or seaports and traveling outside of the Southern District of Florida. Additionally, he has internet access restrictions, including a prohibition on accessing tax preparation or unemployment claim websites.
Records additionally show that in 2015, Edmond was convicted in another federal identity theft case stemming from a 2013 arrest, in which he was accused of receiving lists of personally identifiable information from a Bank of America teller in Miami. He received a sentence of time served.
If convicted of this latest charge of false claims against the United States, he could spend up to five years in federal prison.
As of Friday morning, he remained in custody at the Federal Detention Center in downtown Miami.
Local 10 News emailed his Fort Lauderdale-based attorney, Zeljka Bozanic, seeking comment on the case.
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