Business owners get prison time

TAMPA — A federal judge sentenced two business owners Thursday to federal prison for crimes including wire fraud, money laundering, and structuring financial transactions.

Christian Lee Hancock, 36, received a sentence of 57 months in federal prison for the crimes listed above, while Tina Inez Schneider, 37, was sentenced to 13 months in federal prison for structuring financial transactions. A federal jury found both guilty Nov. 3.

Hancock and Schneider were the owners and operators of Gator Core Inc., a Riverview metal recycling company. According to a release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Florida, Hancock and Schneider conspired to steal hundreds of tractor-trailer loads of auto batteries that were on their way to Envirofocus Technologies, a lead smelter in the Tampa area, and Johnson Controls.