MIAMI (WSVN) - A husband and wife were convicted of being a crime duo after admitting to their roles in a massive theft of funds from their homeowner’s association.
In court on Thursday, former Hammocks HOA President Marglli Gallego pled guilty to one count of racketeering, and her husband, Jose Gonzalez, pled guilty to one count of money laundering.
“As to count one of the information, I’m adjudicating you, sentencing you to seven years in the state prison,” Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida Judge Andrea Ricker Wolfson told Gallego.
Gallego, named “The Mastermind” of a multi-million dollar rip-off scheme, will head to prison while her husband gets saddled with years of probation.
According to investigators, Gallego led a cast of characters that ultimately stole $11 million.
At a press conference on Thursday, Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez-Rundle heralded the conviction.
“The now-convicted thieves who ran the Hammocks Homeowners Association, like an organized crime syndicate,” she said.
This case stems from a 2022 arrest of eight people of the Hammocks Homeowner’s Association board, including Gallego and Gonzales.
According to the state attorney, their investigation revealed a bunker at the HOA office where incriminating documents had been hidden. Their mobile investigation unit also found thousands of documents tucked away inside a strip mall disguised as a spa.
All the information gathered unraveled the scheme that led to these arrests and convictions, officials said.
The case prompted state lawmakers to take action to prevent this type of fraud scheme from happening again.
“They added criminal penalties to our HOA and [condominium associations] laws, finally providing the necessary tools for prosecutors around the state to go after corrupt HOA and COA boards,” said Fernandez-Rundle.
These changes have made it harder for people to steal from an HOA and to hide it.
However, prosecutors said that if alleged criminals are found, the penalties will be much harsher under these new laws.
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