A multimillion-dollar fraud scheme has been charged against the leaders of Florida’s largest homeowners association.
Investigators arrested five members and vendors of the Hammocks Community Association in West Kendall, Dade County, which oversees 40 communities and over 6,000 units.
The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office charged former HOA president Marglli Gallego and her husband, Jose Antonio Gonzalez, as well as current HOA president Monica Isabel Ghilardi, board member Myriam Arango Rodgers, and former board member Yoleidis Lopez Garcia, on Tuesday afternoon.
“We usually associate racketeering and money laundering with drug cartels,” said Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle.
According to investigators, the people arrested stole over $2 million from the organization’s finances and kept the money for themselves for years.
“No one would have ever connected such serious criminal allegations to one of Florida’s largest homeowner associations,” Fernandez Rundle said. “The charges stem from [Gallego’s] misappropriation of board funds for his own use.”
According to prosecutors, the planned community of more than 18,000 people has been in disarray. Residents complained about high HOA fees, and there was a recall campaign against the HOA board.
“Everything was fine until the new board took over. “It’s gone to hell,” said Shannon Baratz, a resident of Hammock Trails. “I pay nearly $500 in HOA fees.” That is absurd.”
Baratz showed 7News payment receipts from October and November.
“They’re all just using and abusing our money, and we’re the ones paying for it,” she explained. “I’ve had an incredible year. That’s all I have to say. This has really hampered me. What else could I do if I didn’t want to lose my house? They threatened to take it away if I didn’t pay.”
Florida State Senator Annette Taddeo, who represents the Hammocks neighborhood, wrote to Miami-Dade Police Chief Alfredo Ramirez III. She claimed in it that she received a threatening phone call while watching a HOA election in January.
Taddeo believes it was used as a “reason to cancel all in-person voting for the hundreds of residents who had been waiting in line to vote for over two hours,” according to her letter.
Officers from the MDPD responded, but they were unable to locate the call.
Residents said they are relieved that more board members are facing charges.
“Thank God, and guess what? Merry Christmas! This is a fantastic holiday. “At long last, we have some good news for us owners,” said Baratz.
The arrests, according to Fernandez Rundle, are only the beginning of the investigation. Additional arrests are possible.