ST. PETERSBURG — A former property manager of Parkshore Plaza, a high-end condominium building in downtown St. Petersburg, was sentenced to two years in prison this week after authorities say she used company money to buy vacations to Disney, book personal flights to Maryland, pay for expensive trips to the salon and cover her home water bill.
|
Parkshore Plaza is pictured in downtown St. Petersburg in October 2014. |
Elliott was then
promoted and gained direct access to the condo association’s
bank accounts, after which she began bypassing the
accounting department and paying the credit card bills over
the phone, Mansfield said.
According to court records, a St. Petersburg police
detective investigated the case and confirmed more than
$150,000 in personal purchases including: “luxury vacations,
gasoline purchases, Sunpass tolls, dining, high end
shopping, salon and spa services, hotels, airfare, theme
parks, vehicle repair/maintenance, and orthodontics.”
Of those transactions, more than $34,000 was used to book 10
trips to Disney resorts for Elliott and “numerous family
members,” the detective found. Additionally, she bought
airfare and lodging in Maryland, thousands of dollars in
dining and hotels across Florida and nearly $4,000 in
purchases from Ellenton Mall near Bradenton, and paid the
water bill for her family’s home in Manatee County,
according to court records.
Hayman, who took over Elliott’s job after she was promoted,
also used company cards to buy tickets to Disney World and
more than $4,000 in prepaid Visa gift cards, according to
court documents, and is participating in a pre-trial
diversion program that could allow her to avoid a felony
conviction.
Marquardt, the condo association president, said in an email
that he attended Tuesday’s sentencing hearing and he
supported the judge’s decision. He added that Parkshore
Plaza switched to a new property management company in 2018
for reasons unrelated to this case.
“While Parkshore Plaza was made whole financially by Associa
Gulf Coast, which employed Ms. Elliott, her actions were a
serious breach of trust that warranted the criminal
punishment the judge handed down,” he said.
Lawyers representing Elliott and Hayman did not respond to
requests for comment.