Six arrested over $5.8M fraud targeting Miami-Dade condo associations

Six suspects face grand theft and racketeering charges after a two-year probe into a scheme draining over $5.8M from five Miami-Dade condo associations.

Property manager accused of masterminding $5.8M condo fraud in Miami-Dade

Google News MT — Crime (en) reports that six individuals have been charged in connection with a large-scale fraud targeting multiple condominium associations across Miami-Dade County, with losses confirmed at more than $5.8 million.

Miami-Dade Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz announced the arrests at a news conference Thursday, describing the operation as the outcome of a two-year investigation into the theft of funds from five separate condo associations.

Cordero-Stutz identified 60-year-old Juan Awais as the alleged mastermind, saying he ran the "brazen criminal enterprise" through his property management companies. Awais reportedly cultivated the trust of condo board members — described by investigators as mostly elderly residents who spoke only Spanish — before exploiting that access to siphon funds.

Awais and his co-conspirators then used a network of companies to extract money from the associations through several methods, according to Cordero-Stutz. These included submitting invoices to vendors for services that had already been paid, and billing for work that was never carried out.

In one case, a suspect kept hundreds of thousands of dollars from an insurance payout that had been intended to fund repairs after Hurricane Irma, the sheriff said.

The five associations targeted were the Mira Villa Condo Association, Los Suenos Condo, Samari Lake East Condo Association, Lago Grande, and Country Lake Manors.

The six defendants — Awais, Michael Irizarry, Delma Alonso, Johana Barrios Perez-Tapia, Juliet Ramos, and Cynthea Louise Waltz — face charges including grand theft, organised fraud, money laundering, and racketeering, according to court records.

Cordero-Stutz said the $5.8 million figure reflects confirmed losses to date, but indicated the total could rise substantially as the investigation continues. "This affected hundreds of families across Miami-Dade County," she said. "We suspect that it is higher."

The sheriff also addressed residents living in condominium and homeowners' association communities directly, saying they have the right to know where their monthly fees and special assessments are going. Further arrests have not been ruled out.

Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)