SOUTH MIAMI, Fla. — A former employee of a South Miami restaurant was arrested Thursday after it was revealed that he defrauded his ex-boss out of more than $50,000 while handling catering orders and deliveries, police said.
According to an arrest report from the South Miami Police Department, the investigation began on Oct. 17 when the owner of Cala Millor, located at 4000 SW 57th Ave., notified police about an internal theft and fraud by embezzlement scheme allegedly committed by his former employee, Inaki Olabarri Jauregi, 38, of Miami.
The report states that Olabarri Jauregi was the restaurant manager and catering director from March 2023 until he resigned on Sept. 30, 2025.
When he resigned, Olabarri Jauregi was told to return the company-issued MacBook Air which was used for business management purposes.
Police said Olabarri Jauregi returned the laptop on Oct. 3 after claiming he needed time to erase personal information.
But when the restaurant owner tried to access the laptop, he discovered the password had been changed, authorities said.
Police said the victim was able to gain access to the laptop with assistance from Apple and located bank statements that showed multiple Zelle transactions from Cala Millor customers that were sent to Olabarri Jauregi’s personal bank account from January 2024 to September 2025.
According to the report, Olabarri Jauregi diverted the payments that were meant for catering events, defrauding the business owner out of $50,808.22.
Police said they also discovered that on Aug. 5, when he was still employed by the restaurant, Olabarri Jauregi registered a separate catering business under the name Catering by the Lab LLC, which operated out of the home of another Cala Millor employee, who still works for the restaurant.
According to the report, Olabarri Jauregi initially agreed to speak with detectives after being taken into custody, but then refused to answer specific questions related to the restaurant’s business transactions.
Olabarri Jauregi faces charges of organized fraud, grand theft, offenses against computer users, and embezzlement of trade secrets/theft.
As of Friday afternoon, he was being held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on a $25,000 bond.
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