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Article Courtesy of The Miami Herald
By Carli Teproff
Published April 9, 2019
She said her name was
Tracy Pierson and she lived in apartment
11A.
Pierson became the treasurer of Crystal
Court Manor’s Home Owners Association in
February 2018 and was given use of the
condo’s bank card.
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But police say there were
two problems. First, Pierson used the card to bilk the
association out of more than $50,000 from March to December
2018. Second, that’s not her name.
“An investigation into Pierson revealed she gave false
identifying information to the HOA,” police said in a news
release. “Detectives are looking to find Pierson’s true
identity.”
The issue came to light in January when a former board
member called police to report that Pierson stole from the
association.
She told police that she had gotten a call from the city’s
water department in November telling her that the water
would be turned off to the community if the $1,088 bill was
not paid, according to an incident report.
The former board member then called Pierson to ask her why
the community was behind on the water bill. She told police
that Pierson said she had used the money for cancer
treatments, according to the report. |
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Hollywood police on April 4, 2019, released a photo
of a woman who detectives say gave a fake name -- Tracy Pierson --
and bilked a condo association out of $50,000.
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Pierson had her boyfriend
pay the water bill with his credit card, police said in the report.
An examination by the former board member into the condo’s bank account
revealed ATM withdrawals and charges to places including Uber, Bed, Bath &
Beyond and pet stores, police said.
According to the police report, Pierson and the board’s president — who
recently stepped down because of health issues — were the only ones with
access to the account.
The former board member, police said, was able to show police text messages
Pierson sent in which she said “she was only borrowing the money and her
intent was never to steal it,” an officer wrote in the report.
Pierson tried to “bargain off a payment” with the board, police said, but
the board did not take it.
After being called out on the finances, Pierson disappeared, police said. An
investigation revealed she had not been truthful about her name.
“Any time you entrust someone to have access to your finances or your
association’s finances, you should verify their identity yourself, or
through a third party who conducts records checks, so you can be sure who
you are dealing with,” said Miranda Grossman, a spokeswoman for Hollywood
police.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Hollywood Police Department at
954-764-4357 (HELP) or 954-967-4411 or Broward Crime Stoppers at
954-493-8477 (TIPS).
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