Case 1:18-cr-20136-FAM Document 21 Entered on FLSD Docket 03/23/2018 Page 1 of 8

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA

CASE NO. 18-20136-CR-MORENO/LOUIS

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

vs.

LEWIS RICHARD BENNETT,

Defendant.
________________________________________/

THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA’S UNOPPOSED

MOTION TO CONTINUE TRIAL

The United States of America, by and through the undersigned Special Assistant United

States Attorney, hereby respectfully requests that this Honorable Court grant a continuance for

pretrial hearings, and trial for defendant Lewis Richard Bennett (hereinafter referred to as “the

defendant”) in the above-captioned case. In summary, the United States is awaiting responses to

official requests for physical evidence currently in several foreign countries; adequate time is

needed to arrange for the presence of foreign, out-of-state, and military witnesses; and additional

time is needed for the defendant and counsel for the United States to reasonably and effectively

prepare for pretrial proceedings and for the trial itself, due to the unusual and complex nature of

this case. In support thereof, the United States of America states as follows:

1. In the early morning of May 15, 2017, the United States Coast Guard (USCG)

received an Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon (E-PIRB) and Personal Locator Beacon

(PLB) activation approximately 26 nautical miles west of Cay Sal Bank, Bahamas. Around the

same time, the defendant, a dual citizen of the United Kingdom and Australia, also dialed and

received several calls, including to the USCG, reporting that he was in distress and in the same

general location.
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2. The defendant reported that he had been on board an approximately 40-foot

catamaran, named S/V Surf Into Summer (hereinafter the “VESSEL”) with his wife, Isabella

Hellman (Hellman), sailing from Cuba to Florida. The VESSEL was registered to the defendant

in Australia. The defendant stated that he had retired to the cabin to sleep on the evening of May

14, 2017, leaving Hellman to operate the vessel at the helm. The defendant stated that he awoke to

a loud thud on May 15, 2017. The defendant reported that he moved topside to look for Hellman

who was not at the helm, or on the VESSEL. The defendant stated he moved to address the sail,

engaged the engines, and got the VESSEL underway. The defendant indicated he noticed the

VESSEL was taking on water, and then he gathered his personal belongings, deployed his life raft

and ultimately abandoned ship. The defendant later told law enforcement that the estimated total

time from being awakened until abandoning ship was between 45 minutes to one hour.

3. A USCG helicopter ultimately rescued the defendant in international waters shortly

after 4:00 a.m. and landed at an airport in Marathon, Florida. USCG later retrieved the

defendant’s life raft and noticed the defendant secured a number of personal items in his life raft,

including a suitcase and two backpacks.

4. In the following days, USCG ships and air assets searched approximately 4,980

square miles for Hellman. On the evening of May 18, 2017, the USCG suspended the search.

To date, Hellman, a naturalized United States citizen, has not been located. Members of the

helicopter, fixed wing plane, and two cutters involved in the search efforts for Hellman all reported

that no navigation hazards were observed during the search and rescue efforts, including but not

limited to, no other vessels, no shipping containers, and no floating objects.

5. During the search efforts, USCG recovered and transported the VESSEL’s life raft

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and contents to USCG Station Key West, Florida, arriving on May 19, 2017. Prior to being

received by the FBI, these items were inventoried in accordance with USCG policy. The items

found included, among other items: a suitcase; one backpack; un-expended parachute flares;

buoys; fourteen (14) gallons of water; a secondary EPIRB; and nine (9) plastic tubes, wrapped

with clear tape containing what were determined to be silver coins.

6. During the investigation related to the disappearance of Hellman, U.S. law

enforcement learned that the silver coins had been stolen from a sailing vessel, the KITTY R, in

May 2016 while it was in Sint Maarten. In addition, when executing a search warrant at the last

known residence for the defendant and Hellman, law enforcement discovered and seized gold

coins. The owner of the KITTY R has examined photographs of the gold and silver coins and

confirmed that the silver coins were part of his collection of coins stolen from the KITTY R in

2016. Law enforcement also learned that the defendant had reported the theft of gold and silver

coins, among other items, to a Dutch National Police Officer in Dutch Sint Maarten in or around

May 2016.

7. Through the course of the investigation, law enforcement learned that a marine

surveyor, at the defendant’s request, surveyed the VESSEL in June 2016 before the defendant

purchased the VESSEL. The marine surveyor currently resides in French Saint Martin. After

purchasing the VESSEL, the defendant registered the VESSEL in Australia, and insured the

VESSEL in the United Kingdom. Additionally, it was determined that the defendant purchased

boating equipment, including a life raft, in French Saint Martin leading up to his departure with

Hellman in or around April 2017.

8. An initial review of the defendant and Hellman’s financial records revealed that the

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defendant (or the defendant’s business, Next Generation Solar), may hold a bank account in

Australia. These records also indicate the defendant was receiving wire transfers through

OzForex Limited, an Australian based global money transfer company. The financial holdings,

or lack thereof, of the defendant could be evidence of a monetary incentive for the defendant to

murder Ms. Hellman.

9. On February 20, 2018, the defendant was arrested pursuant to a Criminal

Complaint charging him with second degree murder within the special maritime and territorial

jurisdiction of the United States. [DE: 5].

10. On February 27, 2018, a federal grand jury sitting in Miami returned an

Indictment, charging the defendant with second degree murder of Isabella Hellman within the

special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States, in violation of Title 18, United

States Code, Section 1111(a). [DE: 8].

11. On March 2, 2018, the defendant was arraigned. [DE: 9].

12. On March 16, 2018, the Court set this criminal case for trial during the two-week

period beginning April 2, 2018. [DE: 17].

13. The United States requests a continuance to the trial in this case because the United

States is pending the receipt of physical evidence presently in foreign countries and confirmation

of requests for assistance with foreign witness requests, adequate time is needed to arrange travel

for foreign, out-of-state, and military witnesses, and the nature of the prosecution is so unusual or

complex, requiring extensive pretrial preparation.

14. There is physical evidence presently in Australia, French Saint Martin, and

potentially the United Kingdom that the United States intends to offer at trial, which are the subject

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of an official request for evidence. Specifically, the United States has requested the following

evidence from foreign authorities:

(1) Records, documents, and communications, pertaining to bank and credit accounts from
Commonwealth Bank of Australia, held in the name of the defendant, the defendant’s
business partner, and/or Next Generation Solar.

(2) All records, documents, and communications pertaining to accounts from OzForex
Limited, an Australian company, held in the name of the defendant, the defendant’s
business partner, and/or Next Generation Solar.

(3) Official records from Australian government agencies, including the Australian
Maritime Safety Authority, Insurance Fraud Bureau of Australia, and Insurance
Council of Australia. The records sought from these entities include: (a) records
relating to S/V Surf Into Summer, Lewis Richard Bennett, and/or Isabella Hellman,
including but not limited to documents concerning the registration of the S/V Surf Into
Summer; (b) records relating to any investigations into accidents or damage to the S/V
Surf Into Summer, investigations into accidents involving Isabell Hellman; and (c)
record relating to insurance coverage and requests for payment due on insurance on the
S/V Surf Into Summer and/or Isabella Hellman.

(4) Records, documents, and communications pertaining to the defendant’s purchase of a

life raft for the S/V Surf Into Summer, on or about March 2017, in French Saint Martin.

(5) Certified copies of any public health records from the United Kingdom of the
defendant’s minor child. 1

15. Additionally, the Government is currently seeking the testimony of witnesses who

are currently located in Australia, Bonaire, France, and French Saint Martin. The United States

has requested permission to contact the following civilian and/or law enforcement witnesses

residing in a foreign country, and to invite those witnesses to testify at trial:

(1) The marine surveyor who conducted a survey of S/V Surf Into Summer at the request of
the defendant in June 2016. The marine surveyor currently resides in French Saint
Martin.

(2) A business associate and social contact, who both reside in Australia.

1
On May 28, 2017, the defendant departed the United States with his and Ms. Hellman’s minor child on a flight to the
United Kingdom. According to court filings, the defendant’s minor child is believed to be in the United Kingdom.
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(3) The prior owners of the S/V Surf Into Summer, who are believed to reside in France.

(4) The Dutch National police officer who had been stationed in Dutch Sint Maarten and
spoke to the defendant when he reported the theft of the gold and silver coins from his
employer. The police officer currently resides in Bonaire.

16. The United States prepared the official requests to Australia, The Netherlands, and

France in February and March 2018. The request to the United Kingdom is proceeding through

law enforcement channels. DOJ’s Office of International Affairs (“OIA”) approved and

submitted the official request to Australia on March 19, 2018, and to The Netherlands on March

15, 2018. The official request to France is currently being reviewed by OIA. The request for

information to the United Kingdom request was made by U.S. law enforcement to United

Kingdom law enforcement in early March. The undersigned has been advised by OIA that

similar requests to Australia and France are typically satisfied within six (6) to nine (9) months,

meaning that the physical evidence will likely arrive, and the witness assistance will be provided,

sometime between September and December 2018.

17. As explained in this motion, the United States has worked diligently to obtain the

physical evidence currently in Australia, French Saint Martin, and the United Kingdom, as well as

the testimony of the witnesses currently in Bonaire, French Saint Martin, France, and Australia.

Suffice it to say, that the physical evidence and the witness testimony is crucial to the United

States’ case in chief and relates to the sole count charged in the Indictment.

18. Under the Speedy Trial Act under Section 3161(h)(8), any period of time up to one

year is excludable upon a Court’s finding that: (1) an official request, as defined in Section 3292,

has been made for evidence located in a foreign country; and (2) it reasonably appears, or

reasonably appeared at the time the request was made, that such evidence is, or was, in such

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foreign country.

19. Furthermore, the United States anticipates calling witnesses serving in the U.S.

Coast Guard at various geographic locations across the country, as well as civilian witnesses,

several of whom reside outside of Florida. Additional time is needed to coordinate travel

arrangements for these witnesses.

20. Finally, the facts underlying the Indictment are complex and will involve extensive

pretrial preparation and discovery. On March 16, 2018, the United States timely provided

defense counsel initial discovery materials, which included two hard drives and 56 CDs containing

thousands of pages of discovery material. The United States and the defendant are working to

coordinate a time for inspection of physical evidence, property, and other discovery materials.

Due to the unusual and complex nature of the case, adequate preparation for pretrial motions and

the trial itself require time in excess of the limits established by the Speedy Trial Act. Proceeding

on the currently scheduled trial date of April 2, 2018 would significantly jeopardize the

defendant’s ability to defend himself against the pending charges.

21. Furthermore, the United States anticipates the disclosure of 6TB of supplemental

discovery during the week of March 26, 2018 to the defense. Further supplemental discovery

disclosures may be warranted based upon the continuing investigations by United States and

foreign law enforcement agencies, which will require defense review and possible independent

investigation.

22. Accordingly, the United States requests that trial be continued from April 2, 2018,

to at least February 2019. The United States also requests a status conference to be held

approximately two months before the new trial date, so that the parties can update the Court on the

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status of the official requests to Australia, The Netherlands, France and the United Kingdom. The

time would be excludable under Section 3161(h)(7)(A) because the continuance serves the

interests of justice.

23. The undersigned attorney has contacted defense counsel in this matter, who does

not oppose the motion.

Respectfully submitted,

BENJAMIN G. GREENBERG
UNITED STATES ATTORNEY

By: s/ Emily A. Rose

EMILY A. ROSE
Special Assistant United States Attorney
Court No. A5502275
99 Northeast 4th Street
Miami, Florida 33132-2111
Tel: (305) 961-9136
Emily.Rose@usdoj.gov

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I HEREBY CERTIFY that on March 23, 2018, I electronically filed the foregoing
document with the Clerk of the Court and counsel of record using CM/ECF.

s/ Emily A. Rose
EMILY A. ROSE
Special Assistant United States Attorney