An elected was finally arrested in Miami-Dade. But it wasn’t for anything done in public office.
Medley Councilwoman Ana Lilia Stefano was charged with two felony crimes related to her other job as executive director of the Santana Moss Foundation. Stolen: About $24,000 worth of food for the needy.
The charges relate to the alleged defrauding of the nonprofit food bank Feeding South Florida, which donated food items to the Santana Moss Foundation, which allegedly turned around and sold the sustenance to religious organizations and healthcare clinics in and around Medley.
Stefano — who runs the foundation and has exclusive control over all bank accounts, donations, vehicles, facilities, and other assets — was charged with organized scheme to defraud, a first degree felony, and grand theft of over $20,000, a second degree felony.
The foundation’s status as a federally recognized 501(c)(3) was revoked earlier this year for failure to file the required Internal Revenue Service documents. Moss, a former 14-year NFLer who played for the Carol City High Chiefs, had no part in its operations and told investigators he was surprised the foundation still existed.
Read related: Farm Share should stop food exploitation by elected officials
According to the state attorney’s office, the organization’s primary focus has been in Medley since it launched its free groceries program in 2014. The food is obtained through Feeding South Florida from major retailers such as Walmart, Publix, Aldi, Costco and Target.
“Through Stefano, the Santana Moss Foundation became one of the partner organizations with the knowledge that the sale of any donated food for any reason was strictly prohibited,” the state attorney’s statement reads.
But a volunteer at the foundation said Stefano was doing just that and provided the state attorney’s office with the names of several “paying customers” and electronic records — text messages and computer screenshots — to support the allegation that she was selling the food rather than distributing it for free.
¡Pero que muerta de hambre tiene que ser!
“Customers” paying via check were even instructed to write bogus subject lines like “maintenance” or “program maintenance” — anything but food purchases. There is also indication she used the food to campaign for office.
Stefano was also reprimanded by the Ethics Commission for violating the Ethics Code’s voting conflict and exploitation of public position provisions when “in her official capacity as Councilwoman for the Town of Medley, she used the power of her office to sponsor, discuss, and vote on an item that granted the Santana Moss Foundation the special benefit of gaining permanent access into the Lakeside Retirement Park in Medley.”
“Allegedly defrauding a charity for one’s own personal benefit can never find acceptance in this community,” Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said in a statement. “Utilizing a leadership position of a nonprofit corporation made these alleged crimes possible but having an elected position should have made such actions ethically inconceivable.”
Ya think? In this climate? Have you met Joe Carollo?
In the joint statement, Nelson Bellido, chairperson of the Miami-Dade Commission on Ethics & Public Trust, thanked the state attorney’s office and staff at the ethics commission who originally investigated the allegations.
“It is through such cooperative efforts to combat fraud that we can try to deter others from committing similar acts that Ms. Stefano is alleged to have committed,” Bellido said. “Violating the Ethics Code, in this case on multiple occasions, uncovered criminal acts that the Ethics Commission reported to the State Attorney’s Office and resulted in the eventual prosecution of this individual.
“The Ethics Commission will continue to aggressively pursue those who violate the ethics code in the quest to restore the public’s trust in Miami-Dade County,” he said.
#Goals.
Medley Council’s Ana Lilia Stefano busted for ‘free’ food fraud at non profit added by Ladra on
View all posts by Ladra →
