A prominent Miami Beach doctor accused of more than a dozen sex crimes had all but one charge dropped after a key witness was mysteriously found dead in a river.
Dr. Jefferey David Kamlet, 69, was arrested in March 2023 for human trafficking, using a computer to entice a child to engage in sexual conduct, soliciting unlawful sexual activity with a minor and delivering a controlled substance to a child.
The charges stemmed from Kamlet’s involvement with two girls, ages 16 and 17, as reported by NBC Miamii. But last March, Kamlet pleaded guilty to a single count of interference with custody after agreeing to a plea deal that required him to serve a day of probation and surrender his medical license.
The 17-year-old, called Gina by the band Miami Heraldwas found face down in Miami four days after her mother reported her missing in June 2023.
Gina was at the center of the sex trafficking case against Kamlet, an addiction doctor who specialized in drug withdrawal. The two reportedly met on Tinder in April 2022, before she and a 16-year-old friend were discovered by police hiding in the closet of Kamlet’s oceanfront apartment.
Gina told police when she heard Kamlet “was wanted for sex with minors, he had a criminal record for that, like he did this with multiple people.”
But it wasn’t until several months later that a detective contacted Gina, who then revealed that Kamlet had handcuffed her to a bed and that they had sex twice.
Police arrested Kamlet nearly a year later and found drugs, high-powered assault weapons, handcuffs, sex toys and nearly $100,000 in cash at his home.
Dr. Jefferey David Kamlet, a prominent Miami Beach doctor accused of more than a dozen sex crimes, had all but one charge dropped after a key witness was found dead
Gina and Kamlet had reportedly met Kamlet on Tinder before she and a 16-year-old friend were discovered by police hiding in the closet of Kamlet’s oceanfront apartment in April 2022.
Police arrested Kamlet nearly a year later and found drugs, high-powered assault weapons, handcuffs, sex toys and nearly $100,000 in cash in his home.
Kemlet told the Miami Herald that he “did nothing illegal” and denied any sexual involvement with the underage girls. He claimed that the “two young ladies” had “made a plan to entrap a rich man.”
A Miami Herald investigation accuses the office of Miami-Dade State’s Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle of bungling the case despite her promotion of anti-trafficking efforts.
Gina told police she met the doctor on Tinder, and he offered her $600 to have sex with him. She then asked her 16-year-old friend Tara to meet her at his apartment.
Kamlet allegedly offered Gina “pure Colombian cocaine,” according to police records that say Kamlet “had every milligram of cocaine” [oxycontin] in every color’ at his home. Gina noted that she had “never seen so many drugs, cash and guns in my life.”
Gina told police the two had unprotected sex before he gave her the promised money and more cocaine. As the two girls talked to Kamlet about living with him, police banged on the door after tracking Gina’s phone when her mother reported her missing.
Kamlet is seen on police bodycam telling police, “I was trying to help them… I was trying to be the hero here,” and he insisted that the girls show him IDs that said they were 18 and had asked him for help.
“Do you know Sergeant? Motola, who just retired?’ Kamlet asked an officer at one point, referring to former Sergeant Jeffrey Motola. ‘He’s a good friend of mine. If you call him, he’ll tell you I’m a good guy.’
The girls were then taken from the apartment in handcuffs before being picked up by their parents. Kamlet was not arrested or questioned further. Tara’s mother told the Herald that no one had ever followed up on the case.
Kamlet is seen on police bodycam telling police, “I was trying to help them… I was trying to be the hero here,” and he insisted that the girls show him IDs that said they were 18 were.
The girls were then taken from the apartment in handcuffs before being picked up by their parents
Gina and Kamlet are expected to continue talking through a secure app on their phones for the next few weeks. In one message, the doctor reportedly told Gina, “They can own the world if she stays off drugs and has good chemistry.”
In July 2022, Kamlet allegedly picked her up and took her to his apartment, where he showed her pornography and suggested she enter the porn industry. The two had sex and Kamlet paid Gina $400, $200 less than he had promised, because, Gina said, he was angry that she would not let him perform oral sex on her.
Gina was last seen alive on June 4, 2023, four days before her body was found.
The Herald notes that Kanlet’s ankle monitor sent an alert to the Department of Corrections on June 6. Records show Kamlet had been contacted and was home, but officers were still dispatched to his home to “troubleshoot issues.”
A medical examiner ruled Gina’s cause of death “undetermined,” and Miami police have not opened an investigation into Gina’s death.
Her stepfather claimed she had feared for her life before she was found dead.
“She said, ‘Daddy, they’re going to kill me,’” the stepfather told the Herald. “I told her not to go out anymore and to stay home, but she didn’t listen.”
Gina’s Mom Claims Medical Examiner Told Her ‘She Had Drugs’ [in her system] he had never seen it before and it was being investigated.”
The autopsy report shows that Gina had drugs such as fentanyl and cocaine in her system when she died. However, her cause of death is not listed as overdose or drowning.
Despite a series of previous mugshots in 2008 and 2009, the Herald was unable to find any evidence of Kamlet’s previous arrests
In July, Kamlet was federally charged with illegally selling drugs including ibogaine, oxycodone, morphine and ketamine.
Kamlet, himself a recovering heroin addict, promoted the use of psychedelics to treat addiction and ran a concierge-based wellness practice that catered to Miami’s most powerful and wealthy.
He charged more than $10,000 a year for services such as administering ketamine. Many of his clients paid in cash because they ‘didn’t want a paper trail,’ court documents show.”
Despite a series of previous mugshots taken in 2008 and 2009, the Herald could not find any evidence of Kamlet’s previous arrests.
The Miami-Dade District Attorney’s Office said, “The criminal case against Jeffrey Kamlet was seriously affected by the death of one victim, the focus of the human trafficking charges, and the second victim’s unwillingness to continue her participation in the criminal justice process. .
“The lack of victim testimony has seriously weakened prosecutors’ ability to prove all charges filed beyond a reasonable doubt. The victim’s relatives approved the plea presented to the court, stating that such an action would bring a sense of solidarity to the victim and her family.”
Last July, Kamlet was federally charged with illegally selling drugs including ibogaine, oxycodone, morphine and ketamine. He was arrested and released on $100,000 bail.
That case is still ongoing, but sources told the Herald the case will likely be dismissed after Kamlet’s attorneys file a motion that prosecutors admitted raises “important legal and factual issues.”