Roger B. Handberg III, a longtime federal prosecutor named the Chief Federal Law Enforcement Official for the Middle District of Florida. He is to begin serving as the U.S. Attorney by the appointment of United States Attorney General Merrick B. Garland in December 2021. Regarding federal law, Roger B. Handberg should fill the highest position in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida for 120 days or until a new presidential nominee has been appointed, whichever comes first. The vacancy in the office resulted from the stepping down of former U.S. Attorney General Maria Chapa Lopez, then-President Donald Trump’s nominee. Former Top Federal Prosecutor Lopez served in the position since 2018 and tendered her resignation in February 2021. By the Federal Vacancies Reform Act, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Karin B. Hoppman temporarily served as Chief Federal Law Enforcement Official for the Middle District of Florida upon the resignation of former U.S. Attorney Lopez and until the appointment of interim U.S. Attorney Handberg. Acting United States Attorney Roger B. Handberg III is reported to be one of five attorneys seeking President Joe Biden’s nomination for a permanent top federal prosecutor for the district for U.S. Senate confirmation. Moreover, U.S. Attorney Handberg is one of the three current finalists.
Table of Contents
- Educational Background, Academic Honors, and Bar Admission
- Legal Career of Attorney Handberg
- Private Practice
- Office of the Attorney General for Florida
- Office of the United States Attorney for the Middle District of Florida
- Most Significant Litigated Matters
- Office Jurisdiction
- Contact Details of State’s Attorney Handberg
- Tampa Office (Headquarters)
- Jacksonville Office
- Orlando Office
- Fort Myers Office
- Ocala Office
- Social Media Profiles of Roger Handberg
Educational Background, Academic Honors, and Bar Admission
Top Federal Prosecutor Roger Handberg received his Bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina. A resident of the City of Oviedo, Florida, U.S. Attorney Handberg earned his Juris Doctorate from the Harvard Law School, where he was a part of the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy Editorial Board in 1993. Top Federal Prosecutor Roger Handberg was subsequently admitted to practice law in the State of Georgia in 1994 and the State of Florida in 2000.
Legal Career of Attorney Handberg
Private Practice
Launching his legal career in private practice, U.S. Attorney Handberg became an Associate at the King & Spalding law firm in Atlanta. At the time, U.S. Attorney Handberg focused on General Commercial Litigation, remaining in the position for approximately five years, from 1994 to 1999. Following his stint in private practice, Top Federal Prosecutor Handberg entirely shifted the focus of his legal career to government service and became a federal prosecutor.
Office of the Attorney General for Florida
In 1999, U.S. Attorney Handberg became a Senior Assistant Attorney General in the Economics Crimes Division to then-United States Attorney General of Florida Bob Butterworth. In this capacity, U.S. Attorney Roger Handberg planned, organized, and managed the statewide work of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Opinion Unit. This entailed regularly assessing the Unit’s mission, functions, and operations, coming up with enhancements or modifications that would be preferable, and directing the execution of any changes. Moreover, as Senior Assistant Attorney General for the Office of the Florida Attorney General, Top Federal Prosecutor Handberg aided in carrying out the most complicated and challenging tasks for the Opinion Unit, participated in all stages of the work of the legal professionals, and was primarily in charge of personnel management within the Unit. In addition, U.S. Attorney Handberg also served as a primary legal advisor to former Florida Attorney General Butterworth, as well as to the members of the government agencies.
Office of the United States Attorney for the Middle District of Florida
Joining the Office of the United States Attorney for the Middle District of Florida in 2002, Top Federal Prosecutor Handberg quickly rose through the ranks in the office and handled several leadership roles from initially being appointed as Assistant United States Attorney. Within his approximately two decades of service in the U.S. Attorney’s Office, United States Attorney Handberg has served in various senior positions, including as the Chief of the Office’s Criminal Division and Senior Litigation Counsel. In 2008, Top Federal Prosecutor Roger Handberg was handed the responsibility of overseeing the Orlando Branch of the Office of the United States Attorney for the Middle District of Florida and was appointed Chief of the Orlando Division.
Most Significant Litigated Matters
In his prosecutorial career in the Office of the United States Attorney for the Middle District of Florida, U.S. Attorney Roger Handberg has specialized in investigating and prosecuting public corruption and white-collar crime cases. He has successfully prosecuted more than $500 million in fraud cases as part of his career. Top Federal Prosecutor Handberg became best known for extracting guilty pleas from boy band mogul Lou Pearlman and former Seminole County tax collector Joel Greenberg. Lou Pearlman was widely linked to the launch of two of the most popular bands—the Backstreet Boys and ‘N Sync; however, Pearlman quickly became infamous for a twenty-year Ponzi scheme, as he encouraged investors to invest in fictitious companies backed by three other fictitious businesses. Investigation of the case began in 2007, which led to Pearlman pleading guilty to charges of conspiracy, false bankruptcy proceedings, and money laundering in 2008. Scamming investors out of more than $300 million in total, Lou Pearlman was sentenced to 25 years in prison, with a projected release of March 24, 2029. Pearlman died in 2016, still in federal custody.
Before he was appointed Top Federal Prosecutor in recent years, United States Attorney Roger Handberg prosecuted the case against Greenberg, who was previously charged with 33 crimes. In May 2021, he pleaded guilty to six charges, including conspiracy to bribe a public official, identity theft, sex trafficking of a child, stalking, and wire fraud. Joel Greenberg still awaits sentencing but has previously cooperated with U.S. Attorney Handberg’s team in their investigation. Across his two-decade career as a federal prosecutor, U.S. Attorney Roger Handberg prosecuted a wide array of cases, including a case related to one of the deadliest terrorist attacks on United States soil since 9/11. Handberg was a part of the prosecution team that tried Noor Salman—the wife of Omar Mateen, who single-handedly shot to death 49 individuals and injured 53 in the Pulse nightclub shooting in June 2016. Salman made a series of incrimination statements to FBI agents during an 11-hour interrogation following the shooting, which led to her being charged in relation to federal terrorism. Prosecutors alleged that Salman aided and abetted her husband in the 2016 massacre and accused her of obstruction of justice for lying to investigators. Noor Salman was acquitted of all charges in 2018.
Office Jurisdiction
The Office of the United States Attorney for the Middle District of Florida will be overseen by Roger B. Handberg III, who has been appointed as the district’s Chief Federal Law Enforcement Official. In this position, U.S. Attorney Handberg supervises the five branch offices in Fort Myers, Jacksonville, Ocala, Orlando, and Tampa, which has jurisdiction over 35 of the 67 counties in Florida. The U.S. Attorney’s Office serves and protects over half of the population in the State of Florida, with more than 11.5 million residents. As such, Top Federal Prosecutor Roger B. Handberg III leads the prosecution of cases in the second most populous district in the whole of the United States. In addition, the Office of the United States Attorney for the Middle District of Florida enforces criminal laws and represents the United States in civil judicial proceedings within the district.
Contact Details of State’s Attorney Handberg
Full Name: Roger B. Handberg
District/State: Middle District of Florida
Public email ID: roger.handberg@usdoj.gov
Tampa Office (Headquarters)
U.S. Attorney’s Office
400 North Tampa Street
Suite 3200
Tampa, FL 33602
(813) 274-6000
Main
(813) 274-6358
Fax
Jacksonville Office
U.S. Attorney’s Office
300 N. Hogan Street
Suite 700
Jacksonville, FL 32202
(904) 301-6300
Main
(904) 301-6310
Fax
Orlando Office
U.S. Attorney’s Office
400 W. Washington Street
Suite 3100
Orlando, FL 32801
(407) 648-7500
Main
(407) 648-7643
Fax
Fort Myers Office
U.S. Attorney’s Office
2110 First Street
Suite 3-137
Ft. Myers, FL 33901
(239) 461-2200
Main
(239) 461-2219
Fax
Ocala Office
U.S. Attorney’s Office
35 S.E. 1st Avenue
Suite 300
Ocala, FL 34471
(352) 547-3600
Main
(352) 547-3623
Fax
Social Media Profiles of Roger Handberg
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YouTube
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Username: USAO Middle Florida
Tag: @USAO_MDFL
URL: https://twitter.com/USAO_MDFL
Updated: August 8, 2022