A scheme designed to defraud music fans and investors involving counterfeit concerts and artist engagements has ended with the sentencing of two culprits. Terronce Morris was sentenced to 57 months in federal prison on charges of mail and wire fraud conspiracy, along with aggravated identity theft, according to a press release from the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida.
Reports reveal that Morris, 42, of Missouri City, Tex., and Blake Kelly, 37, from Los Angeles, California, engaged in deceptive practices by forging signatures and impersonating artists like J.B., P.M., and B.E. to sell fraudulent concert contracts. Collectively, they managed to con nearly $3 million from victims. Morris pleaded guilty on February 13, and Kelly had already pleaded guilty on January 9 to the same crime.
The fraud apparently began in December 2019, where Morris and his accomplice convinced a victim, identified as J.R., to invest $1,350,000 into a music festival that was never intended to happen. Court documents indicate that the duo forged artist agreements and even staged a video call with an impersonator of artist J.B. to secure the funds. Morris continued these deceptive practices despite cease and desist letters from the real artists' lawyers, defrauding another victim of $500,000 using similar tactics involving fake contracts and assurances.
Even after his initial arrest, Morris showed no signs of halting his operation: He met with a victim, W.P., in December 2023 and falsely assured that the mythical J.B. concert would "go on someday in the near future," said the U.S. Attorney's office. Morris' actions throughout this charade, including opening a bank account using a victim's personal information who shared J.B.'s name, embodies a flagrant disregard for legality and the financial well-being of his victims.
Kelly, the second individual involved, faced a lighter sentence of 13 months in federal prison for his part in the operation. The FBI's Miami Field Office carried out the investigation with U.S. Attorneys Roger Cruz and Joan Silverstein heading the prosecution. Those interested in the unfolding of this case can find updates and related court documents on the websites of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida and the District Court for the Southern District of Florida respectively.
