The court finds Jason R. Humphreys apparently liable for a forfeiture of $48,000 for using a cell phone jammer in his car during his daily commute between Seffner and Tampa, Florida. Mr. Humphreys' illegal operation of the jammer apparently continued for up to two years, caused actual interference to cellular service along a swath of Interstate 4.
(a) Penalty of $16,000 for jamming law enforcement frequencies, plus (b) Penalty of $16,000 for jamming cellphone frequencies, plus (c) Penalty of $16,000 for operating that same jammer for two years.
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On May 7, 2013, agents from the Bureau's Tampa Office (Tampa Office) initiated an investigation into this matter and monitored the suspected route. On May 7, 8, and 9, 2013, the agents determined, using direction finding techniques, that strong wideband emissions within the cellular and PCS bands (i.e., the 800 MHz to 1900 MHz band) were emanating from a blue Toyota Highlander sport utility vehicle (SUV) with a Florida license plate. On May 9, 2013, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office (Hillsborough Sheriff), working closely with the agents from the Tampa Office, stopped the Toyota Highlander SUV. The Hillsborough Sheriff deputies reported that communications with police dispatch over their 800 MHz two-way portable radios were interrupted as they approached the SUV.
The agents from the Tampa Office and the Hillsborough Sheriff deputies interviewed the driver, who identified himself as Jason Humphreys. Mr. Humphreys admitted that he owned and had operated a cell phone jammer from his car for the past 16 to 24 months. An inspection of the vehicle revealed the cell phone jammer behind the seat cover of the passenger seat. Mr. Humphreys stated that he had been operating the jammer to keep people from talking on their cell phones while driving. At the conclusion of the interview, the Hillsborough Sheriff deputies seized Mr. Humphreys' cell phone jammer pursuant to Florida state law. On the following day, May 10, 2013, Metro PCS confirmed that the interference to its cell towers had ceased. On June 14, 2013, agents from the Tampa Office tested the seized cell phone jammer and confirmed that it was capable of jamming cellular and PCS communications in at least three frequency bands:
821-968 MHz, 1800-2006 MHz, and 2091-2180 MHz.