State Attorney John F. Durrett announces that on May 29, 2025, following a jury trial, defendant Frank Martin Kalandek was found guilty as charged of six counts of Sexual Battery Upon a Child Under 12 Years of Age, four counts of Lewd or Lascivious Molestation of a Child Under 12 Years of Age, and two counts of Felony Child Abuse. After the verdict, the Defendant was sentenced to a total of 10 life sentences for each punishable by life count, plus 30 years for each count of felony child abuse.
The child victims, residents of the State of Michigan, were in Suwannee County during the summers of 2020 and 2021 to visit extended family. The evidence presented established that during these time periods the Defendant abused his position of trust as a spouse of an extended family member to gain access to the victims and commit these crimes.
In addition to the testimony of the victims and family members, testimony and evidence provided to the jury revealed the Defendant had disposed of items of evidence relevant to the crimes the same day he learned law enforcement was investigating the allegations of abuse. The jury also listened to recorded phone calls wherein the Defendant directed a third party to claim ownership of the evidence, and further, directed the third party to claim responsibility for disposing of the evidence. Expert analysis from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement Friction Ridge Section established that the Defendant’s fingerprints were on the items of evidence which were recovered from a dumpster on the property of the Luraville Country Store. Additional evidence and testimony established the defendant had visited the Luraville Country Store just prior to the items being retrieved by law enforcement at that location.
This case was investigated by the Suwannee County Sheriff’s Office and State Attorney’s Office Investigators with assistance from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement as well as law enforcement partners in the Detroit, Michigan area.
The State of Florida was represented at trial by lead counsel, Assistant State Attorney Melissa Blackwell, and co-counsel, Assistant State Attorney Sean Crisafulli.
