Aventura police arrested a condominium board president on several felony charges, including racketeering and money laundering, on Tuesday after they accused him of embezzling more than $1.5 million from unit owners since 2017. According to an online biography, Arzumanov, originally from the former Soviet country of Georgia, has served as the association president since 2008. […]
Why you should pay special attention to closing your books this year
I’ve been posting the condo and HOA news for over 20 years now. During the first 6 years, I might have run across 3 or 4 cases of people stealing from an association. During the last 2 years, I’ve seen over 20. And most of them haven’t been for small amounts. The scams were often […]
Embezzlement uncovered at Dunvegan Woods: Condo board alleges late manager stole $200K (NH)
Condo owners at Dunvegan Woods are reeling after learning the late president of their association allegedly embezzled hundreds of thousands of dollars, leaving the complex with only a few thousand dollars in the bank…..According to a letter sent in mid-September to Dunvegan condominium owners by the board of directors, following the death of long-time association […]
Fraud Alert – Beneficial Ownership Reporting
The Beneficial Ownership Reporting under the Corporate Transparency Act requires businesses to provide information (including personally identifiable information) to the federal government to combat fraud, terrorism, and money laundering. However, the passage of this Act has created additional opportunities for fraudsters. FinCEN has issued a warning about a scam targeting individuals and companies subject to […]
Woman who embezzled more than $375K from Upper Gwynedd employer gets probation (PA)
A Berks County woman who stole more than $375,000 from her Upper Gwynedd employer avoided being sentenced to jail time on felony theft-related charges and received seven years’ probation for her crime…..Butt also must repay $375,928 in restitution to the Gwynedd Office Condominium Association at 311 Sumneytown Pike within seven years, where she worked as […]
‘This is not right’: Albuquerque police investigating HOA president’s paychecks
Members of an Albuquerque homeowner association are now paying much closer attention to what the association is doing with their money. And they want other HOA members to learn from their experience. Fed up with how their neighborhood looked, a few members asked to look at the association’s finances. They wanted to know what their […]
Understanding HOA Embezzlement: How to Protect Your Community
HOA embezzlement is an issue that can impact a community’s financial well-being. When funds collected through HOA dues are misappropriated, it reduces available resources and affects trust within the community. Homeowners associations (HOAs) manage and maintain shared spaces, and the dues paid by residents are essential for these functions. Understanding HOA embezzlement, recognizing its signs, […]
HOA Fraud is a Hardly Detected and Thriving Cancer of Our Society
The most affordable homes can be the ones built as part of a homeowner’s association (HOA) – nothing wrong with that. The surroundings are always maintained through the HOA and the only thing homeowners need to worry about is the interior of the house, as well as paying regular monthly dues to the HOA. But […]
HOA theft suspect skips second hearing (AZ)
The former general manager of Villas West failed to attend a second change of plea hearing Monday, prompting a judge to affirm the arrest warrant he issued last week. Jesus Daniel Sotelo, who is accused of stealing thousands of dollars from the residents association, five other HOAs in Arizona and a bookkeeping service, had been […]
Former Des Peres alderman gets probation for embezzling $220,000 from condo association (MO)
A former longtime alderman here was sentenced to five years of probation Thursday for embezzling $220,000 over the last decade from a St. Louis commercial condominium association that hired him to manage its property. John Pound, 80, was also ordered to pay $292,305 restitution to the association. He pleaded guilty in March to three counts […]
Smiths Station woman arrested for allegedly using HOA money for personal use (AL)
The Lee County Sheriff’s Office arrested a Smiths Station woman on theft charges. On July 31, investigators received reports of theft of property from the Shadow Wood subdivision Home Owner’s Association in Smiths Station. According to officials, a member of the HOA advised that the previous president, Latoya Cook, used approximately $11,000 from the HOA […]
Florida Senate GOP candidate faces September trial in $48K theft case involving an HOA
A candidate for Florida Senate this August is facing charges of grand theft in Orange County involving a homeowner’s association, with a trial scheduled to start in September. Cheryl Blancett, 63, is facing charges that stem from a years-long investigation into the theft of nearly $48,000 from a homeowners association for a neighborhood in east […]
$55,000 of Kendall condo association money was found in a personal bank account, cops say (FL)
A former property management worker for a Kendall condo association was arrested Monday, accused of stealing more than $55,000 of community money that was found in her personal bank account. Read the article…………………………….
Former president of Warren condo association accused of stealing $140K (OH)
A Warren man has pleaded “not guilty” to a grand theft indictment accusing him of stealing more than $140,000 from a condominium association…..According to an indictment handed up by the county grand jury, Rule allegedly used deception to steal $140,218 from the Surrey Point II Homeowners Association when he was the organization’s president. Read […]
Employee accused of stealing thousands from condo association in The Hammocks (FL)
A 54-year-old woman is accused of a multi-year fraud scheme involving a condominium association she worked for in The Hammocks. Ivonne Leon was an administrative assistant for the Royal Palm Place Condominium Association, responsible for collecting payments from residents and depositing into the association’s account, an arrest report stated. However, Leon is accused of depositing […]
Five Steps to Protect a Community Against Fraud & Embezzlement
The Board of Directors of an owner’s association wears many hats: decision maker, mediator, judge, and community organizer. Quite possibly the most important role a Board member serves is that of a fiduciary. A fiduciary is a person or entity put in a position of trust to protect the interests of a third party. While […]
Woman’s indictment includes HOA thefts (VA)
A Frederick County woman was indicted Thursday for allegedly embezzling thousands of dollars from two parent teacher organizations and a homeowner’s organization. Shawn Marie Bianco, 44, of the 100 block of Georgetowne Court in Stephens City, was indicted by a grand jury for 25 charges of embezzlement from three different groups, according to documents. Read […]
Former Galveston condo manager charged in $188,000 theft (TX)
A former island property manager is behind bars after being charged with felony theft in connection to embezzlement of about $190,000 from a condominium complex over about seven years, according to court documents. Read the article…………………………….
GOP state senate candidate faces September trial for looting Orlando HOA (FL)
Cheryl “CJ” Blancett, 64, of Leesburg, is on the ballot for the Aug. 20 State Senate District 13 Republican primary. But the following month, on Sept. 23, the candidate, who describes herself as a “gladiator for the U.S. Constitution,” goes on trial for two counts of felony theft in Orange County’s Ninth Judicial Circuit Court. […]
Up North condo owners accuse ski resort of rental property management fraud (MI)
A group of rental condominium owners at three Boyne resorts in Northern Michigan have filed a lawsuit accusing the company of price gouging and fraud. (Behind Crain’s subscription paywall………….)
Ex-HOA chief accused of theft (OH)
Court documents state Rule is accused of having submitted falsified invoices to the HOA’s management company to collect reimbursements that amounted to $140,218. Investigators verified the listed vendors and examined the receipts before determining the payments were for work that was never performed. Some of the invoices submitted were for nonexistent companies. Read the article…………………………….
Jersey City Man Charged in Theft from Union City Homeowners Association (NJ)
Authorities have charged a Jersey City man in connection with the theft of funds from a Union City homeowners association. According to Hudson County Prosecutor Esther Suarez, members of the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office Special Investigations Unit arrested 39-year-old Eric Li yesterday at the prosecutor’s office in Secaucus. Read the article…………………………….
Ex-Hilton Head POA treasurer convicted after embezzling over $200K from reserve accounts (SC)
With restitution finally paid, a former treasurer for a Hilton Head POA who was caught embezzling over $200,000 from the association’s reserve accounts will dodge jail time with a three-month probation sentence. The woman siphoned funds from the community for more than four years without raising any eyebrows. Read the article…………………………….
SC judge gives woman 5 more years for ‘egregious’ $1.1M theft from Rock Hill development
Besides GRH, Hill also stole money from the homeowners association at Riverwalk, prosecutors and company officials said in court. Hill was in charge of the money for eight months in 2020 before being caught. “She has been given chances to change her behavior, but she has chosen fraud and dishonesty,” GRH employee Debbie McMillan said […]
Delaware Hides Embezzlement Plot for Over a Year
The State of Delaware hired Brittingham in February 2019. That summer, he was sentenced to two years in prison for stealing almost $43,000 from his homeowner’s association by writing checks to a company he owned, NEWAGE Management LLC, the news outlet reported. Read the article…………………………….
Best Practices to Combat Payment Fraud
Community association management companies are under siege from high-tech con artists determined to rip them off. From phishing schemes and business email compromise attacks to account takeovers and vendor impersonation, fraudsters have become more brazen and sophisticated. Read the article…………………………….
Property manager bankrupt after stealing $700K from Aurora HOA (CO)
A property management company has filed for bankruptcy after a judge determined that its owner stole $700,000 from a homeowners’ association in Aurora and spent the ill-gotten gains on a Lincoln, a Louis Vuitton, a stay at the Ritz-Carlton and other frivolities. Mastino Management, in Parker, filed for Chapter 11 on May 15. Its co-owner, […]
Southampton man convicted of fraud, money laundering (NY)
Officials said that Slothower devised a scheme to misappropriate more than $1 million from clients and prospects. While operating Battery Private, Slothower solicited business from a couple from California whose money he had managed at another financial services firm where he was previously employed. Slothower promised the victims he could beat any rate of return […]
Government Issues Scam Alert for Corporate Transparency Act
The U.S. Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, also known as FinCEN, recently issued an alert warning individuals and businesses that scammers are using the Corporate Transparency Act to fraudulently solicit information from individuals and businesses who may be subject to reporting requirements under the Corporate Transparency Act. Read the article…………………………….
Sarasota business owner sent to prison for real estate fraud (FL)
Even with his federal trial being over in Virginia, charges remain pending against Santiago at home in Sarasota. In 2022, Santiago was president of the Beneva Ridge Condominiums homeowners association when its new treasurer — Esther Quiles, wife of Sarasota County Commissioner Mark Smith — became “wary that HOA funds are being misappropriated by the […]
Former Colorado real estate agent must repay more than $1 million stolen from investors
A Berthoud man was sentenced last month in Weld County after taking more than a million dollars in investors’ money meant for a new condominium complex and spending it on his own overseas vacation and sporting events. Bret Lamperes, 54, was ordered by a Weld County judge to repay $1,062,500 he transferred to his own […]
Italy: Former Condominium Manager’s Assets Seized for Embezzlement
Assets worth about 300,000 euros have been seized by the Financial Police of Naples from a former condominium administrator who, according to investigations by the North Naples Prosecutor’s Office, from 2014 to 2023 repeatedly appropriated sums of money by withdrawing them from the bank account of a condominium complex in Casoria. The condominium residents noticed […]
Berks woman admits to $375,000 theft from Montgomery County condo association (PA)
A Berks County woman admitted that she embezzled more than $375,000 while working as the bookkeeper for the Gwynedd Office Condominium Association in Upper Gwynedd Township. Judith E. Butt, 74, of the 700 block of Hopewell Street, Union Township, pleaded guilty in Montgomery County Court to felony charges of dealing in proceeds of unlawful activity […]
Guarding your Association’s Finances: Best Practices to Combat Payment Fraud
Community Association Management companies are under siege from high-tech conmen determined to rip them off. From check fraud and Business Email Compromise (BEC) attacks to account takeovers and vendor impersonation, fraudsters have become more brazen and more sophisticated. Mailbox keys purchased on the Dark Web or stolen from postal carriers have made it easy for […]
Condo manager has licence revoked over cryptocurrency buy (ON)
A property manager who transferred $500,000 in condominium reserve funds to an alleged cryptocurrency investment company known as Pink Piggy (NOTE: This article is behind a subscriber paywall. I will try to find another article ASAP, but here is the original link to the Globe and Mail: Read the article…………………………….)
Banks fail to get Villas West lawsuit dismissed (AZ)
A U.S. District Court judge says a lawsuit brought by Villas West Condominium Association against two banks following the loss of hundreds of thousands of dollars can move forward despite attempts by the banks to have it dismissed. According to U.S. District Court records, the condo association filed a lawsuit in Pima County Superior Court […]
Santa Monica luxury towers, HOA fees, alleged theft: Where did the millions go? (CA)
Residents didn’t grasp the scale of the alleged problems until last year — when a Los Angeles County grand jury handed down a 119-count indictment accusing both Spahis, now-former Ocean Towers Housing Corp. President Joseph Orlando and his wife, Dorothy, of grand theft, identity theft and money laundering. Read the article…………………………….
‘Fraud never pays’: Utah woman sentenced after stealing over $230K from HOA (UT)
A Utah woman was sentenced to home detention and probation on Monday after stealing from the HOA and putting the money in her own pockets. Sharon Lee Ann Gordon, 66, of Hurricane, was sentenced Monday, April 8, to 12 months and one day of home detention, and three years’ probation after pleading guilty to stealing […]
Legislature Adds Teeth to Florida’s Community Association Fraud Laws
The article focuses on two bills to strengthen criminal penalties for association fraud and malfeasance that have been passed by the Florida Legislature with unanimous votes in both chambers. Both bills impose the exact same strict criminal penalties for a number of violations. They make it a first-degree misdemeanor to intentionally deface and destroy accounting […]
Hudson County Property Manager Admits Role in $470K Condominium Fraud Scheme (NJ)
The scheme was facilitated through the submission of falsified invoices that significantly overcharged the services rendered by Obedos’s company, leading to the condominium complex overpaying by $500,000. Investigations revealed that the complex paid over $1 million for services that were, in reality, worth half that amount. The inflated funds were then distributed as kickbacks, with […]
Legislature Adds Teeth to Florida’s Community Association Fraud Laws
The article focuses on two bills to strengthen criminal penalties for association fraud and malfeasance that have been passed by the Florida Legislature with unanimous votes in both chambers. . . . Both bills impose the exact same strict criminal penalties for a number of violations. They make it a first-degree misdemeanor to intentionally deface […]
Former Homer Glen District 33C Board member charged with stealing money from HOA (IL)
The former treasurer of a Homer Glen homeowners association, also a former Home Glen District 33C Board member, was charged last month for allegedly writing checks to herself, according to court records. Jennifer Rudolph, 43, of the 15400 block of Sharon Drive, was charged March 18 with continuing a financial crime enterprise, two counts of […]
Security firm paying $230K to settle wage-theft case at Chelsea condo (NY)
New York Attorney General Letitia James and city Comptroller Brad Lander on Monday announced a nearly $230,000 settlement with the managers of a Manhattan condo building and a private security firm for underpaying its workers. A joint city and state investigation found that Allied Universal Security Services had for years been underpaying its security guards […]
Fraud Is Out There: Helpful Tips to Guard Against Today’s HOA Scams
Fraud is an unfortunate reality. The good news is that by staying vigilant, we can protect our communities more effectively. One common HOA scam is phishing, which involves fraudulent communications designed to trick people into divulging personal or business financial information. Read the article…………………………….
Former Galveston condo manager charged in $188,000 theft (TX)
A former island property manager is behind bars after being charged with felony theft in connection to embezzlement of about $190,000 from a condominium complex over about seven years, according to court documents. Read the article…………………………….
Employee accused of stealing over $200,000 from HOA in Anderson Co. (SC)
An employee is accused of stealing over $200,000 from a homeowners association in Anderson County. According to the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office, detectives met with the Overlook Homeowners Association President after he noticed a large amount of money was missing from the association’s account. Read the article…………………………….
Former Seminole County HOA manager accused of stealing $437K from HOA
Tammi Morrison, a former President of the Ashford Park Homeowners Association, was arrested by the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office after investigators say she stole $437,000 from the community association when her business managed the neighborhood. Read the article…………………………….
Scottsdale HOA says manager stole $1.6M (AZ)
Scottsdale House board members wish they had been more attentive a few years ago. After failing to do a background check on a twice-sued manager who ran the HOA for years, the board started discovering money was disappearing from funds targeted for repairs and upgrades. The deeper into the books they dug, board members found […]
Texas sues Colony Ridge development for fraudulent real estate practices
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued the Houston-area developers of Colony Ridge on Thursday, accusing them of deceptive sales, marketing and lending practices that allowed their sprawling housing development to flourish.Residents of Colony Ridge filed dozens of complaints for years about the development to state agencies, but Texas had little to show for addressing those […]
Collier, Lee condo fraud: Owners of management company indicted on federal fraud charges (FL)
The owners of American Property Management Services, who allegedly stole millions from dozens of Southwest Florida community associations, have been indicted by a federal grand jury. The 17-count indictment, filed in January, charges Orlando Miserando Ortiz and his wife Lina Munoz Posada with wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and failure to file income […]