It all started with a simple phone call and a request for a verification code. For a 75-year-old man in Palm Beach, that moment of trust turned into a financial nightmare. Now, the woman behind a nationwide fraud ring is trading her home for a prison cell. Kadesa Sayles, a mother of six from Florida, has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for her role in a sophisticated identity theft operation that left dozens of victims in its wake.
The scheme was as clever as it was cruel. Detectives say Sayles used a tactic known as “SIM-swapping.” She would pose as a customer service representative from a major carrier like AT&T and trick people into handing over their security codes. Once she had those numbers, she took over their phone lines entirely. With control of their phones, she could bypass security on their bank accounts and emails, locking victims out of their own lives while she drained their savings.
One of the most heartbreaking cases involved the elderly Palm Beach resident who thought he was just fixing a technical issue. Instead, Sayles used his information to attempt nearly $200,000 in unauthorized wire transfers. It wasn’t an isolated incident. When police finally raided her home, they found a mountain of evidence. Investigators discovered the personal data of more than 50 people from across the country and over $15,000 in cold, hard cash tucked away.
Prosecutors highlighted the sheer scale of the greed involved. In total, they uncovered more than $220,000 in attempted transfers. While some of the money was flagged before it could disappear, the emotional toll on the victims—many of whom were seniors—was irreparable. The legal battle that followed was just as intense as the investigation.
Before the trial began, the state offered Sayles a way out. She was given the chance to take a plea deal that would have seen her serve just five years behind bars. It was a lenient offer considering the charges, but Sayles turned it down. She chose to take her chances with a jury of her peers, a gamble that backfired in the most dramatic way possible.
After a three-day trial in Palm Beach County, the jury didn’t take long to return their verdict. Sayles was found guilty on 18 separate felony counts, including grand theft and the fraudulent use of personal information. Because she rejected the plea and was convicted at trial, the judge handed down a much steeper punishment: two decades in state prison.
Now, a family is left picking up the pieces. As a mother of six, Sayles’ long sentence means she will be away from her children for a very long time. It is a sobering end to a case that serves as a loud warning to everyone. Authorities are using this story to remind the public that a single text code is often the only thing standing between a scammer and your life savings.
