VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla — A reality TV star remains locked up in the Volusia County Jail after a circuit court judge left her bond at $300,000.
Salome Jackson, better known on television as Betty Idol is accused in a real estate fraud case that took a local family for nearly $200,000.
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The alleged scheme had a number of layers and apparently fooled a lot of people, but according to court documents, it was not sophisticated enough to keep investigators from figuring out how it all played out and tracing most of the stolen money back to Jackson.
The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office released video of the handcuffed 40-year-old walking in for questioning after her arrest. That sheriff’s office video gave off a completely different vibe than the videos she’s most known for. Jackson went by Betty Idol as a singer on the show Love & Hip Hop: Atlanta and later used her given name on VH1’s other reality show Cartel Crew.
Now the 40-year-old is in the limelight for another reason. Investigators allege she stole nearly $200,000 from the owners of a mobile home park in Volusia County in what they call a coordinated real estate scam. According to court records, someone convinced a local realtor they owned a vacant lot in Orange City and wanted to put the property up for sale. The realtor was believed it was the real owners of that lot who contacted her. Deputies believe the people behind the alleged scam even used artificial intelligence to submit counterfeit driver’s licenses as proof of identification.
The buyers were asked to wire the money to a title company in New Jersey. Once the money hit that account, it was sent through several other shell companies with most of the money eventually linking to Jackson, according to the charging documents. Investigators spent 11-months on the case and said they linked the money to her through bank transactions, ATM withdrawals, and purchases of luxury fashion accessories.
The judge held her bond at $75,000 for each of her four charges. Those charges are fraud, grand theft, money laundering and scheme to defraud.
The judge said, “So, your total bond is $300,000. Have a better day.”
Jackson replied, “Thank you.”
Many of the accounts used were opened with someone else’s stolen identity. Court records show Jackson must prove in a separate hearing the bail money isn’t from criminal activity. So, she should remain locked up in the Volusia County Jail at least until that can happen.
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