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Four accused of exploiting Hollywood man with dementia to take home, investigators say
A 71-year-old Hollywood resident was allegedly pressured into signing documents transferring his home, then taken to Miami Gardens and left at a rooming house. Four people face a combined 15 charges, while the man’s family is trying to recover the property.
Four people are accused of exploiting a 71-year-old Hollywood man with dementia to take control of his home and then removing him from the property, authorities said Monday.
Investigators identified the man as Thomas Hegarty. The case began after a sister-in-law contacted Hollywood police about his declining mental condition and what she considered suspicious circumstances surrounding the transfer of his longtime home, in the 2200 block of Mayo Street.
Authorities allege that real estate investors Brandon Lee Miguel, 25, and Jordy Luis Perez, 25, used Hegarty’s deteriorating mental state to obtain his signature on a power of attorney and a warranty deed. Derek Enrique, 43, of Tamarac, is accused of falsely notarizing the documents, which were used to transfer the property to Cash4Keys South Florida, a company officials say the two investors controlled.
The home was valued at about $300,000 but sold for $191,000, officials said.
Investigators allege that realtor Monica Elizabeth Castelli, 56, of Margate, was arranged to remove Hegarty from the home and leave him at a run-down rooming house in Miami Gardens. Officials said she later picked him up after finding him distraught and crying, and took him to Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood. Hospital staff then notified his sister-in-law.
After Hegarty was removed, the group allegedly entered the house and took his personal belongings, including three vehicles, according to the Broward County Property Appraiser’s Office. Cash4Keys South Florida still controls the home, and Hegarty’s family has hired a lawyer to try to get it back, officials said.
Miguel and Perez, arrested in Miami-Dade County, face charges including first-degree grand theft, elderly exploitation, organized fraud and mortgage fraud. Castelli faces an elderly-exploitation charge and a charge of kidnapping with intent to facilitate a felony. Enrique is charged with making a false or fraudulent acknowledgment. Together, the four face 15 charges, officials said.
“The person they picked on was about as vulnerable as they come,” Broward County Property Appraiser Marty Kiar said at a Monday news conference. He said he was glad arrests had been made, adding that the accused would have their day in court.
The investigation involved the property appraiser’s office, Hollywood police, the Broward Sheriff’s Office, the Broward State Attorney’s Office and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. The allegations have not been proven in court.