COLLIER COUNTY: A woman was arrested for allegedly plundering the accounts of a number of home and condominium associations. Amy M. Copeland, 39, was arrested Wednesday on 21 counts of grand theft.  As the bookkeeper for more than 100 homeowner associations, investigators say Copeland found her jackpot.

They say she used her position as an account manager at a company called Integrated Property Management to steal from homeowners like Trissy Ladi.

"Everyone works hard for their money. For someone to be stealing from somebody else it's just not right," she said.

For seven years, Ladi paid homeowner association fees to live in a Naples gated community. But in 2005, detectives say, hundreds of dollars from the Moon Lake Community’s account was stolen by Copeland.
   

"That's pretty sad because like I said, the board of directors here does everything they can to keep our association fees down," Ladi said. Since 2004, Copeland worked for Integrated Property Management, or IPM, a company that manages the money for 130 different home and condo associations in Lee and Collier Counties.

It was there, investigators say, that Copeland transferred hundreds, even thousands of dollars from different association accounts into her own personal account. 

According to the sheriff's office, Copeland stole from 22 different home and condo associations including Village Walk in Naples, which suffered the biggest loss - $20,000 over the course of two years.

In total, detectives say, Copeland made 63 transfers and pocketed $95,330.46.

Leaders from IPM wouldn't talk on camera. But according to the general manager, it was the owners there that nailed Copeland last December after the books didn't add up.

In a statement, they said: "We take this matter very seriously. After we became aware of the fraudulent activity, Amy Copeland's employment was immediately terminated."

Copeland now faces 21 counts of grand theft. "I hope she gets what she deserves," said Ladi. Copeland's mother also worked for the company. She resigned shortly after her daughter was fired.  Investigators do not believe she was involved in the alleged scheme.

IPM is returning the money to appropriate accounts.

The following condo and homeowners associations were affected: