Story highlights
Deputies: Malachi Love-Robinson tried to get an elderly woman to help buy him a Jaguar
He had previously been accused of impersonating a doctor and of larceny
Here we go again.
Malachi Love-Robinson, the 19-year-old charged earlier this year with practicing medicine without a license, has been arrested again.
This time, he’s accused of fraud for trying to buy a Jaguar with the help of an elderly co-signer – without the woman’s knowledge.
Authorities said the teen walked into a Virginia car dealership Friday and tried to buy the $35,000 car. Love-Robinson listed the elderly woman, whom he described as his godmother, as the co-signer.
But dealership employees got suspicious after some comments made by the teen.
“They Googled his name and found that a subject with the same name had been arrested numerous times on fraud type charges” in Florida, the Stafford County Sheriff’s Office said.
So the employees told Love-Robinson they would call him when his credit application was approved. And the teen left.
Half an hour later, the dealership called him back – this time, with two deputies waiting to talk to Love-Robinson and the elderly woman.
“He stated she had agreed to co-sign the loan for the Jaguar he was going to purchase,” the sheriff’s department said. He also admitted that he was out of jail on bond from the state of Florida for practicing medicine without a license, deputies said.
The woman, however, told different story.
She told deputies she was a distant relative of the teen’s, the sheriff’s office said. When asked whether she was willing to co-sign a loan application for Love-Robinson, the woman said she had no intention to.
“Deputy McCormick then showed her the credit application Mr. Love-Robinson had completed that had her information including her social security number listed on it,” the sheriff’s department said.
“Her demeanor then changed, and she stated she had not given permission to him to use her as a co-signer for this loan or any other.”
But a credit card check revealed someone had used her account the day before to buy two iPads and a cell phone, totaling $1,200.
“Mr. Love-Robinson had been bragging to the employees of the dealership earlier that day about two iPads he had recently purchased,” the sheriff’s office said. “They were seized along with other items at the time of his arrest.”
Love-Robinson now faces charges of false statements to obtain credit, obtaining money by false pretenses and identity fraud. He is in custody at the Rappahannock Regional Jail – this time with no bond.
His last known attorney did not immediately return a request for comment Monday.
Teen: I’m not an M.D., but a Ph.D.
Love-Robinson’s bizarre notoriety began in February, when Florida authorities arrested him on suspicion of practicing medicine without a license.
An undercover officer had visited Love-Robinson’s office, where the teen physically examined the officer and provided medical advice, the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office said.
As police led the teen out of his office in handcuffs, he said, “I’m hurt because of the accusations and allegations,” CNN affiliate WPBF reported. “But like I said, this is not the first time where I’ve been accused and I will pursue this. And when I do, you guys will know.”
The now-defunct website for Love-Robinson’s practice listed the teen as its president, CEO and founder.
It referred to Love-Robinson as “Dr.” and had acronyms after his name, such as HHP-C, which is used for those involved in home health and personal care, and Ph.D., which is generally not a medical degree.
But the teen has denied claims he was pretending to be a medical doctor.
“I’m not portraying as an M.D.,” he told ABC News in February. “I never said I’ve gone to school to be an M.D.”
Previous fraud charge
A month after the fake-doctor allegations, Love-Robinson was arrested again on suspicion of fraud and larceny.
Authorities said the teen used checking account information from one of his clients to pay off more than $34,000 in car payments.
He appeared before a judge and was ordered to undergo a mental examination. The teen was granted supervised release.
His attorney at the time, Andrew Stine, spoke highly of his client to CNN affiliate WPTV.
“He has the entrepreneurial spirit of someone like a Donald Trump or a Bill Gates. I’ve never met somebody – and I’m much older obviously – who has such entrepreneurial spirit,” Stine said.
“If it was channeled maybe in a different direction, things could be different here today.”
CNN’s Joe Sutton, Joshua Berlinger, Jeffrey Acevedo and Joseph Netto contributed to this report.