A federal judge in Jacksonville on Monday signed an order to have former Palm Coast resident Noah Michael Urban held in prison until his March trial, and finding him at risk of fleeing if he were released meanwhile.
A federal grand jury in late December indicted Urban, 19, who went by aliases such as “Sosa,” “Elijah,” “Gustavo Fring” and “King Bob,” on one charge of wire fraud conspiracy, eight counts of write fraud, and five counts of aggravated identity theft. He is alleged to have stolen virtual currency from five victims’ accounts by fraudulently obtaining their personal identifying information, managing to take control of their cell phone numbers, and gaining access to their online accounts and cryptocurrency exchange accounts.
The alleged fraud took place between August 2022 and March 2023, according to the indictment. On Nov. 2, 2022, for example, Urban transferred 182.1991 Ethereum, a cryptocurrency, or the equivalent of $294,797, from one cryptocurrency account to his own computer. On Nov. 21, he transferred 1.29 bitcoin worth $21,952 from a second victim’s account to his computer. Subsequent transactions, or thefts, followed, for amounts of $37,742, then $107,230, and in February 2023, a transfer of $374,614.
Noah was arrested on Jan. 9 in Deltona, where Urban was known to have a residence, according to his driver’s license (on Glenwood Plantation Road). He was booked at the Volusia Branch Jail and transferred the next day to federal custody.
Urban tested positive for Covid soon after his arrest and sought to have his detention hearing delayed past Jan. 16, through a motion filed by his attorney, Assistant federal Defender Kathryn Sheldon. Judge Joel Toomey granted the motion. He was arraigned on Jan. 19 and pleaded not guilty on all 14 counts. The prosecution moved to keep Urban in prison, citing various reasons.
Urban had no fixed address at the time of his arrest and was using an alias to stay at Airbnb’s, all the while aware that he was under investigation. In March 2023, when a search warrant was executed at his home, he was downloading software to delete computer files. “He has never been employed but appears to be self-supportive,” the order states. In May 2023, he told authorities that he would no longer have contact with co-conspirators, some of whom are overseas. But he did so anyway. Taking those reasons into account, along with the likelihood of a “lengthy period of incarceration if convicted,” the judge agreed to keep Urban in detention.
Urban’s trial is scheduled for March 4 at 9:30 a.m. before Judge Harvey E. Schlesinger.
