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FCC Warns Four in Florida

Alleged pirates broadcasting in Lauderdale and Lake Worth areas

Pirate activity is keeping the enforcement bureau in Miami on its toes as the Federal Communications Commission warns operators about their possible illegal activity up and down the Eastern Coast of the Sunshine State.

On Oct. 3, the Miami Enforcement Bureau warned several operators in the cities of North Lauderdale, Fort Lauderdale and Lake Worth that operation of radio transmitting equipment — at a certain frequency without a valid authorization — is a violation of federal laws.

In North Lauderdale, a warning was sent out to Rochisnel Jerome and Lydie Toussaint after direction-finding techniques revealed that radio signals on frequency 101.1 MHz were emanating from a residential property on SW 83rd Ave. in this city. A dozen miles away in Fort Lauderdale, agents picked up unlicensed radio signals on 97.7 MHz from a property on NW 12th Ave. that is owned by ONEWAVE LLC.

Another 40 minutes up the Florida coast in Lake Worth, agents detected radio signals coming from a residential property on Carver St. belonging to Pauline Ferguson. Those unauthorized signals were operating on frequency 88.7 MHz.

That same frequency in Lake Worth was also being used by Garfield Smith, the FCC said. Field agents confirmed that radio signals on frequency 88.7 MHz were emanating from a residential property on South E St., and that Smith was determined to be the operator of this station.

In all of four cases, the field strength readings picked up by FCC staff exceeded the maximum permitted level of 250 microvolts per meter at 3 meters for nonlicensed devices, meaning the station is operating in violation of Section 301 of the Communications Act. The FCC has given each operator 10 days from the date of the notice to respond.

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