Felice John Viti Acting United States Attorney for the District of Utah | U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Utah
A Utah property manager has confessed to involvement in wire fraud and bank fraud schemes, admitting to embezzling over $2.1 million from a range of victims. Blake Floyd Cozzens, aged 35, from Cedar City, accepted guilt for these crimes and was formally charged on March 24, 2025.
Court documents revealed that Cozzens, from January 2020 to January 2025, served as a property manager for various homeowners associations (HOAs) and property owners in Iron County, Utah. During this time, Cozzens acknowledged misappropriating funds from homeowners associations, property owners, and tenants for personal use. Cozzens was also found guilty of manipulating deposits made through an online property management application operated by a California corporation, resulting in a loss of $210,000 for the company. Altogether, Cozzens fraudulently amassed no less than $772,966 through these actions.
Furthermore, Cozzens confessed to defrauding a Las Vegas bank by offering seven cashier's checks worth $1,414,000 at casinos to acquire gambling credits. When faced with losses, Cozzens falsely claimed the checks had been misplaced, prompting the bank not to honor them. This deceptive act led the bank to incur losses amounting to $1,395,673.58.
Cozzens has pledged to reimburse the victims affected by his fraudulent activities. Potential victims are urged to seek support on the U.S. Attorney's Office Victim Witness Assistance page or reach out to the Victim-Witness Coordinator via email at USAUT.Victim.Witness@usdoj.gov or by calling (801) 325-1430.
The sentencing of Cozzens is set for June 11, 2025, at 11:00 a.m. The session will take place before a U.S. District Court Judge at the courthouse located at 206 West Tabernacle Street, St. George, Utah.
The announcement was made by Acting United States Attorney Felice John Viti for the District of Utah.
The investigation of this case is conducted in collaboration with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Cedar City Police Department, and Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department.
The prosecution is being led by Assistant United States Attorney Stephen P. Dent of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Utah.