- June 23, 2026
A Massachusetts travel agency owner who defrauded 104 Seabreeze High School students out of $400,000 for a 2024 international trip was ordered to pay students back by a judge on Thursday, June 22.
Robert Goodwin, arrested in December 2025 on two grand theft charges, was sentenced to time served (180 days) and 25 years of probation during the hearing. He pleaded no contest to charges, and as part of his sentencing, he was ordered to pay a total of $637,260 in restitution — which includes the funds also misappropriated from students at Flagler College in St. Augustine.
According to a press release by the State Attorney's Office, Goodwin paid $194,000 in restitution upfront, to be split among the Seabreeze and Flagler College victims.
“Folks must use due diligence when booking travel with brokers to ensure that their plans come to fruition,” State Attorney R.J. Larizza said following the sentencing. “In this case, the victims are fortunate that a sizable amount of restitution was paid up front.”
In 2023, a group of Seabreeze students and chaperones signed up with Goodwin's travel agency — Stone and Compass Travel — for a nine-day class trip to Italy and Greece in June 2024. Each traveler paid a minimum of $3,550 in travel fees up front.
One month before the trip, the agency notified them by email that it was going out of business and didn't have the money for refunds. Shortly after, the agency's website went down, and all phone numbers and email addresses were deactivated.
The Volusia Sheriff's Office then discovered numerous other organizations were suing Goodwin's agency for similar allegations, including Flagler College. Goodwin was charged in October 2025 and then arrested in December 2025 in California. He was extradited to Volusia County following his arrest.
