A Bradenton flea market coin dealer has been arrested after authorities say he defrauded customers out of nearly $300,000.
Manatee County court records show Seth Felipe Lutz, 63, was charged with multiple counts of grand larceny after customers at the Red Barn Flea Market reported that they paid him thousands of dollars in gold and silver and did not surrender it. accused of a crime.
At least three customers in Manatee County claim Lutz defrauded them of a combined total of about $65,000 in 2024, according to arrest records.
Detectives say this is not the first time Lutz has been accused of defrauding customers. He previously served time in prison for similar crimes in Pinellas County, where investigators say he defrauded dozens of coin buyers out of more than $220,000 over a five-year period.
An attorney representing Lutz did not immediately respond to the Bradenton Herald’s request for comment.
According to the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office, Lutz, who went by the pseudonym “Steve,” made advances at a booth called “Steve’s Best Coins” at the Red Barn Flea Market, 1707 First St. in Bradenton. The company reportedly received the payment, but did not provide the product as promised. Customers said Detective Lutz would go on and on about excuses for the delay before he stopped responding.
Coin dealer defrauded Bradenton buyers, agent says
In one case, a customer told investigators that he paid a deposit of nearly $25,000 to purchase a set of gold coins in January 2024. The customer said he received a receipt but not the gold coins.
When the customer followed up, Lutz repeatedly made excuses and offered a partial refund, but he refused to respond to the customer’s request for a full refund. During subsequent questioning, Lutz told detectives that he never had the coins in stock and could not fulfill the order or return the money, according to the arrest report.
About seven months later, another customer said he paid Lutz $29,000 for more than 1,000 solid silver bars that were supposed to be delivered within three weeks. After the deadline passed, the customer said she contacted Lutz and was told she was in the hospital and there would be a problem receiving the item.
The customer contacted Lutz’s son, whose name was also on the business card, and was told his father was in jail for grand theft, according to the arrest report.
Lutz’s latest criminal charges stem from an incident in May 2024, during which he said a third customer also paid for silver bars. According to an arrest affidavit, the man paid nearly $1,000 for three silver bars after Lutz told him he had them in stock and promised to deliver them right away.
The customer told investigators that he had previously purchased items from Lutz without incident, but this time he never received the promised silver. After several weeks of back-and-forth, Lutz again stated that the item was out of stock and that he could not issue a refund, authorities said.
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During the investigation, detectives said they learned that “Steve” from “Steve’s Best Coin” was actually Seth Lutz. When asked why he wrote the name “Steve” on all of his receipts and used it for business, he said, “I just liked the name Steve,” according to arrest records.
But detectives allege he used a false name to hide his criminal past from clients.
“It is clear that Lutz was attempting to keep his real name secret from the purchaser,” the detective wrote in the affidavit.
Detectives say Lutz previously ran a coin business in Pinellas County called Paradise Coins and Collectibles, and an investigation revealed he defrauded 31 people out of $220,000 worth of gold and silver coins. It turned out that this was the case.
Lutz was arrested in 2017 on charges related to these frauds and served more than five years in prison before being released in September 2022, according to court records.
Despite being on probation until 2037, investigators say Lutz resumed similar fraud operations in Manatee County upon his release.
Deputies arrested Lutz on Dec. 26 and he is being held in the Manatee County Jail on $52,500 bail, according to the sheriff’s office website. Lutz is charged with three counts of grand larceny, but has pleaded not guilty to all charges, according to court records.
