NOCATEE, Fla. – A rejected plea deal was a surprising twist in a high-profile homebuilding fraud case involving reality TV star Captain Sandy Yawn.
Yawn says she now has questions for prosecutors after a proposed agreement for Spencer Calvert, the former owner of Pineapple Corporation, fell apart in court.
Calvert is accused of embezzling millions of dollars and abandoning homebuilding projects in Nocatee.
During a recent court hearing, Yawn confronted Calvert directly.
“You lied to us, you promised us,” Yawn said in court. “You destroyed us, every one of us.”
RELATED: ‘Below Deck’ TV star among those left scrambling after $1.6M Nocatee home left unfinished by builder | Plea deal falls apart for St. Johns County home builder accused of fraud after objections from alleged victims
Prosecutors had negotiated a plea agreement that would have required Calvert to serve five years in prison and pay $150,000 in restitution, split among 13 alleged victims. Under the proposed deal, Calvert would have also paid nearly $1.5 million in additional restitution through monthly payments after being released from prison.
But the agreement quickly unraveled after several alleged victims spoke up during the hearing.
“Absolutely,” Yawn said when asked if prosecutors told victims about the proposed deal ahead of time. “The state actually called us and said there’s a plea deal on the table. $150,000 plus a few years in prison. And we were like no, how could that be OK?”
Yawn said victims were surprised when they arrived at the courthouse and learned the deal had been formally presented to a judge.
“We were shocked when we got to the courthouse and the state actually thought that was OK, when every single person in that room said no, absolutely not,” Yawn said. “Where did the wires get crossed? How was that presented to a judge?”
After hearing from victims, the judge took a recess and later proposed a different plea deal, one that included 10 years in prison and $650,000 in restitution to be divided among the victims.
Calvert rejected that proposal, meaning the case will now move toward a jury trial.
“He had to actually take a recess to think about this… and every person stood up and shared their story,” Yawn said. “It impacted the judge.”
Yawn said the victims support taking the case to trial.
“We all want a trial, every one of us,” she said. “Because you know what if you settle with those terms, you’re saying to every builder out there you can go rob people and not build their house and it’s OK.”
Beyond the courtroom, Yawn says she plans to push for changes to Florida law.
Florida law protects homesteaded properties and many retirement assets from creditors, even in cases involving alleged fraud. Yawn says that can make it difficult for victims to recover their losses.
“So we don’t get to recoup that money to put our roof on, to redo our stucco? To put our floors in, our bathrooms, showers?” Yawn said. “We don’t get to recoup that money because he was arrested and the law says after he was arrested, he’s not accountable. Who made that law? That law needs to be changed.”
Yawn is working with The Legis Group to lobby for changes to state law.
A pretrial hearing for Calvert is scheduled for April 9 at 9 a.m. Yawn says she is confident a jury will ultimately decide the case fairly.
The State Attorney’s Office denied to weigh in on this story saying it does not comment on open cases.