MIAMI — A former condominium property manager has been arrested and charged in connection with an alleged “ghost employee” scheme, the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office announced Wednesday.
According to prosecutors, Yissely Herrouet, 37, is the former property manager of the Club at Brickell Bay building, located at 1200 Brickell Bay Drive, and defrauded condominium owners out of more than $140,000 during her employment from 2016 to 2023.
Prosecutors said Herrouet allegedly made illegal payments to various people, including relatives, for services that were never rendered or for “duplicative services” that were already being performed by another business.
“Thefts from condominium and homeowners’ associations continue to be a major priority of my Economic Crimes prosecutors, as too many of these property owners have been victimized by thefts,” Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said in a statement. “I have long advocated for and helped change Association laws, so property owners have transparency and accountability from their Associations. This arrest is the result of my ongoing focus to protect our homeowners.”
According to prosecutors, Herrouet was a Licensed Community Association Manager (LCAM) working for one of the country’s largest property management companies during the time of the scheme.
“In Florida, an LCAM must complete a lengthy pre-licensing course, pass a state exam, and complete a background check that includes fingerprinting and character and fitness examinations,” the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office said in a news release.
According to an arrest warrant, the SAO began investigating Herrouet in April after her former employer, FirstService Residential Florida, conducted a forensic examination of the condominium’s finances through their attorneys and discovered that Herrouet had falsified timesheets and signed new hire paperwork for “ghost employees” who did not actually work for her employer or the association.
Prosecutors said she then billed the “phantom work” back to the association.
According to prosecutors, Herrouet also used her position to hire a relative’s company to provide cleaning and janitorial services at the building.
Herrouet faces multiple felony charges, including organized scheme to defraud, grand theft, offenses against computer users and making false entries in books of a business entity.
Herrouet was not appearing in the online jail database for Miami-Dade County, as of early Wednesday afternoon.
Court records show that in addition to the criminal charges she faces, Herrouet also faces a civil lawsuit filed against her by FirstService Residential Florida, which accuses her of defrauding the company out of more than $220,000 during her time working as the condominium’s property manager.
The company is seeking the full amount back, along with attorney fees, court costs, interest and fees related to the forensic audit, totaling $738,055.20
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