UNITEPyTATESDISTRICTCOURY

SOUTHERX DISTRICTOFFLORIDACaseNo.ZZ-6OZS4-CR-DIMITROULEAS/XUGUSTIN-BIRCH

68USC.û1343 '

UNITBVSTATESQ?AMERICA

KAREN VL. LAR, '

Defendant.

.

' a

2 .

FILED BY D.C.

2E2û82022

ANGE!.A*.NOBLE

CLERKUb..DISXGX

s.n.oFFLk.-F1:.LAun.

INDICTG NT

TheGtandJttrycha/gesthat:.

GENàPAT,AI,t,1X ATIoNs

.

.y .

Attim esm aterialtothisIndictm ent: . . . .

.

IslM dRom auceH. olidays,Inc.,aproviderofvacationotravel,andlodging

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setviceswhichalsooperatestmderthennmeCoùple'skesort,wasincoporatedin1994,

. J . ' , '

. .

> .

andhasyitscorporateheadquarterslocatedinSunrise,Florida.

.2. Amedgan Express mnintnins its computer server for credk card

apthod' zajio. nsinNbrthCarolina.

'.

( . .

IslandëRomanceHolidays,hc.providesmanyofisemplöyees?includhk .

' .

p

*

'

DefendantKAREN VILLAX aa AmericanExpressBusinessPlatinum creditcard

.. ,

- ' ' :

($'Am'eric'àn Express cme')to pa# foroftkiàlbusinessexp:nses. Each eligible

employçezecrivedaseparateAmericanExpresycardarldDefendantKAQEN VILLAR

.

-

wa!ps'signedavAmerica!lExpressçardendingin 11001.

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U

Case 0:22-cr-60254-WPD Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/09/2022 Page 1 of 8
4. DefendantKAREN VILLAR washiredbylslandRom anceHolidays,Inc.

in Augustof2019,and wasemployed asthe Bookkeeperand OfficeM anager.Asthe

Bookkeeper and Office M anager, ICAREN VV LAR was responsible for general

AV boolcke<e--bA.inc<R.' staff- payroll, corporate credit cards, budgeting, and general office

m anagem ent.Shewasalsoresponsiblefortheoversight,reconciliation,andpaym entof

IslandRom anceHolidays,Inc'stwelvecorporatecreditcards.

Island Rom anceHolidays,Inc.maintainsa corporatebusiness checking

accountending in 7669 a:tTD Bank,located in Plantation,FL. Bvsinessexpensesare

Paid'from thisaccotmt.

The Chief Financial Officer (:&CFO'') would fund Island Romance

Holidays,Inc.'sbusinesschecking accotmtbyt'ransfen'ingfundsintothisaccotmtâom a

. '

Citibank corporate business checkihg accotmt ending in 0147 tmder the nnme ISSA

HotelsandResorts,LT. D - Jamaica.

COUNTS 1-5

IWIltEFRAUD -18U.S.C.j1343)

6 of the General.Allegations section of the'

Indictmèniarere-allegedandincorporatedbyreferenceasthoughftzllysetforthherein.

Paragraphs 1 through

8. From beginning on oraboutOctober4,2019,and continuinglmtilon or

aboutAugust24,2021,inBroward andM inmi-D adeCotmties,intheSouthernDistrictof

Florida,andelsewhere,thedefendant,

'

K AREN N%LLAR,

having devised and intending to devise a scheme and artifice to defraudk and for

obtaining'm oney and property by means ofm aterially false and fraudulentpretçnses,

representations,and'prom ises,forthepurposeofexecutingsuchschem eand artifice,did

Case 0:22-cr-60254-WPD Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/09/2022 Page 2 of 8
lcnowinglytransmitandcausetobetransmittedininterstatecommercebym eansofwire

commtmications,certainwritings,pictures,signs,signalsandsotmds,inviolationofTitlq

18,UnitedStatesCode,Section 1343.

O BJECT OF THE SCH EM E AND ARTIFICE

Itwastheobjectoftheschemeandartificetodefraudforthedefendantto

)

tmjustly emich herself by fraudulently utilizing Island Romance Holidays,Inc.'s

Am erican Express Business Platinllm credit card to make tmauthorized'pçrsonal

ptlrchasesandpaym enttransferswithoutIslandRom anceHolidays,lnc.'sknowledgeor

consent.'.

M ANNER AND M EANS

Themnnnerandmeansbywhichthedefendantsoughttoaccomplishtheobjectof

theschem eand artificeincluded,butwerenotlimitedto,thefollowing:

10. DefendantKAREN VILLAR,while employed as the Bookkeeper and

OfficeM anagerwithlslandRom anceHolidays,Ihc.,madeinexcepsof800unauthorized

personalpurchasestotaling approximately $147,694.92'utilizing hercompany issued

Americqq Express card,forvaziousitem sincluding butnotlimited to rentpaym ents,

utility p>ym ents,restatzrantm eals,vacations,clothing,cosm etic stlrgery,dentalwork,

aVldotherpersonalexpenses.

When.DefendantKAREN VILLAR receivedIslandRomanceHolidays,

lnc.'s m onthly'American Express credit card statements,(m e of Fhich was for the

AmericanExpresscardassignedtoher,and otherm onthlybillsthatneededpaym ent,she

ï '

wouldemailtheCFO seekingfundingandauthorizationtopayt'V sebils.Withinthese

. em ailrequests,Defendént KAREN VILLAR would misrepresentthe tnze am ountof

Case 0:22-cr-60254-WPD Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/09/2022 Page 3 of 8
credit card expenses, including her own, as well as other expenses that needed

reim btlrsem entauthoiization.'

12. Relying solely on Defendant KAREN VILLM US fraudulent

m isreprçsentations within her emails,the CFO would authorize Defendant KAREN

VILLAR'Srequest,andtheCFO would irlitiatethetransferoftherequested fundsfrom

' the Citibnnk accountending in 0147 to the Island Romance Holidays,Inc.corporate

businesscheckingaccotmtendingin7669at.TD éank.

13. Tofacilitatethecom missionofherfraudulentactivity,D efendantK AREN

VILLAR created Gbulk expense''reportsforeach employee who utilized a creditcard

ratherthatlindividualized expensereportsin theEtouickbooks''internalaccotmting

system .Utilizingherposition asboolckeeper,shewouldhideherunauthorizedptlrchases

by fraudufently mnking itappearasifherunauthorized chargesweremadeby other

employeesorby providing theCFO with falsified orincortectstatem ents,reports,and

representatioilsregarding expensesincurredthatneededreimbursem entorftmding.

USE OFTHE W IRES

14. On OJaboutthedatesspecified astcieach cotmtbelow,in Brow ard and

M iam i-DadeCounties,in theSouthem DistrictofFlorida,.and elsewhere,thedefendant,

K AREN W LLAR,fortheptlrpose ofçxecutingthe schem eand artificetodefrapd and

to obtainmoney andpropertybymeansofmaieriallyfalseandfraudulentpretenses,

representations,and prom ises,lcnowing thatthepretenses,representations,andpromises

werefalseandfraudulentwhenm ade,didknowinglytransm itandcausetobet'ransmitted

in interstatecom merce,by meansofwirecomm unication,certain writings,signs,signals

andsotmdsassetforthbelow :

4

Case 0:22-cr-60254-WPD Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/09/2022 Page 4 of 8
COIJNT DATE DESCRIPTION OFW IRECOMMUNICATION

$284.96crebitcardtransactionutilizingKAREN VILLAR'S

IslandRom anceHolidays,Inc.Am ericanExpresscardending

01/13/2920 ip 11001fortheptlrchaseofarotmdtrip SouthwestAirlines

airlineticketfrom FortLauderdale,FL to San Antonio,TX

for passenger Karen Villar, wltich caused a wire

com munication from Florida through the Americ>n Express

creditcardauthorizationserverlocatedinNorthCarolina.

, $2,980.84 credit card transaction utilizing KAREN

VILLAR'SIsland Rom anceHolidays,lnc.American Express

card ending in 11001 for a m onthly rent paym ent at a

2 02/13/2020 residence located in Pembroke Pines, FL 33026, which

caused a wire commlmication âom Florida through the

Am erican Expresscreditcard authorization serverlocated in

N orthCarolina.

$1,685.62 credit card transaction utilizing KAREN

VILLAR'SIslandRomanceHplidays,Inc.AmericanExpress

cardendingin 11001foranAirBnB vacationrentalloéatedin

06/17/2020 Kissimmee, FL,which caused a wire com munication from

Florida through the American Express credit card

authorization serverlocatedinN orthCarolina.

$2,495.00 credit card transaction utilizing KAREN

VILLAR'SIsland Rom anceHolidays,Inc.Am erican Express

. 4 07/15/2020 card ending in 11001 for the paym ent of dentalwork for

patientKaren Villarata dentistlocated in Pem broke Pines,

Florida,which caused a wire communication from Florida

tllroughthçAm ericanExpresscreditcardauthorization server

locatedinNorthCarolina.

$633.36creditcardtransactionutilizingKAREN VILLAR'S

IslandRonianceHolidays,Inc.Am ericanExpresscardending

in 11001forthepaym entofa birthday party at. the Galaxy

02/06/2021 skateway,locatedinDavie,Florida,wltichcausedawire

commllnlcation from Floridathrough the Am erican Express

creditcardauthorization serverlocatedinNorth Cr olina.

5

Case 0:22-cr-60254-WPD Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/09/2022 Page 5 of 8
$2,800.00 credit card transaction utilizing KAREN

VILLAR'SlslandRomanceHolidays,lnc.AmericanExpress

03/05/2021 card ending in 11001 for the partialpayment of cosmetic

stlrgery atadoctor,sotrjyoejooated in M inm i,Florida,which

caused a wire comm llnication from Florida through the

American Expresscreditcard authorization serverlocated in

' N orthCarolina.

Al1inviolationofTitle18,UnitedStatesCode,Section-1343.

A TRUE BILL.

2 q

i -

FOREPERSON

uouatauto .u

V vuuxlvsAoXsT'rvsosoAowxzovuxsszv

M A RC S.ANTON

ASSISTANTU.S.ATTORNW

6

Case 0:22-cr-60254-WPD Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/09/2022 Page 6 of 8
IJNITED STATESDISTRICT COURT

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORD A

UM TED STATES OF AG RICA

V.

KAREN S7LLAR

/

Defendant.

CourtDivision(selectohe)

D Miami L KeyW est D'FTP

D.FTL L,W PB '

Idoherebycertifythat:

1. Ihavecyreftlly consideredtheallegationsoftheindictment,thennmberofdefendants,thenumberofprobable

witnessesandthelegalcomplexitiesoftheIndicM enW nformationattachedhereto.

Iam awarethattheinformationsuppliedonthisjtatementwillberelieduponbytheJudgesofthisCourtin setting

theircalend.a. rsandschedlzlingcriminaltrialsunderthemandateoftheSpeedyTrialAct,TitleZYU.S.C.93161.

CASE NO.:

CERTW ICATE OF TRG L ATTORNEY *

SupersedingCaseInform ation:

NewDefendantts)(YesorNo)

NttmberofNew Deféndants

TotalnumberofNew Counts

Interpreter:(YesorNo)No

Listlanguageand/ordialect: - .

ThiscaseW IItake 2 daysforthepartiestotry.

Pleasecheckappropriatecategoty andtypeofoffenselistedbelow:

(Checkonlyone) (Checkonlyone)

I D'0to 5days D Petty

11 L 6to10days L M inor

llI D'llto20days L@M isdemeanor

IV D lvtb60days z Felony

v R ldaysandover

HastliscasebeenpreviouslyfiledinthisDistrictCourt?(YesorNo)No

lfyes,Judge CaseNo. '

Hasacomplaintbeenfiledinthismatter?@ esorNo)No

Ifyes,M agistrateCaseNo. ,'

8. DoesthiscaserelatetoapreviouslyfledmatterinthisDistdctCourt?(YesorNo)No

Ifyes,Judge CaseNo.

9. Defendahtts)infederalcustodyasof

l0. Defendanttsl.instatecustodyasof

l1. Rule20from the Disz ctof

12. Isthisapotentialdeathpehaltycase?(YesorNo)No

l3. Doesthiscaseoriginatefrom amatterpendingi.ntheNorthernRegionoftheU.S.Attorney'sOffice

Pri0rtoAugust8,2014(Ma'g.JudgeSianiekMaynard?(YesorNo)No

l4. Poesihiscaseoriginatefrom amatterpendingintheCentmlRegionoftheU.S.Attorney'sOYce

priortoOctober3,2019(Mag.JudgeJaredStrauss?(YesorNolNo

By:

M rCS.M ton '

AssistantUnitedSGtesAttorney

FL BarN o.' 0148369

Case 0:22-cr-60254-WPD Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/09/2022 Page 7 of 8
UNITED STATES DISTW CT COURT

SOUTIIERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA

PENALTY SHE/T

Defendaqt'sNam e: K AREN VILLAR .

CaseNo: .

Cotmts#:1-6

InviolationofTitle18.UrlitedStatesCode.Section 1343

*M ax.Term ofIm prisonm ent:20years

*M andatoryM in.Term ofImprisonment(ifapplicable):

*M ax.SupervisedRelease:3years

*M ax.Fine: $250,000ornotm ore'thapthegreateroftwicethegrossgain ortwicèthe

grossloss. ' .

) .

' ''-

Cotmt#:

'' . .

*M ax.Term ofIm prisonm ent:

*MandatoryMin.Term ofImprisonmenjj t(ifapplic'able):

*M ax.SupervisedReleàse:

*'M ax.Fine: .

Count#:

*M ax.Term ofIm prisonm ent: '

*MandatoryMin.Tqrm ofImprisonment(ifapplicable):

*M ax.SupervisedRelease:

*M ax.Fine:

*Refersonly topossibleterm ofincarceratiqn,supervised releaseandfines. Itdoesnotinclude

restlttttion,specialassessm ents,paroleterm s,orforfeituresthatm aybeapplicable.

Case 0:22-cr-60254-WPD Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/09/2022 Page 8 of 8