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A woman with over a decade of experience at a car dealership in Miami has been identified as the mastermind behind an elaborate fraud scheme that diverted more than a million dollars to her own family.
The accused, identified as Yuddy Mejías, worked for more than 15 years at Brickell Motors -also known as Murgado Automotive Group- where she rose from a cafeteria employee to a key position in the billing department.
From that position of trust, she would have orchestrated the embezzlement that now has her detained, along with her husband and son.
A rise that ended in scandal
Mejías, 51 years old, began his career at Brickell Motors around 2008 in a modest role, working in the café.
However, over the years, he climbed the ranks until he reached the accounting office, where he was entrusted with tasks related to processing refunds for clients.
His role involved issuing checks when vehicle buyers had credit balances, such as after overpayments or cancellations.
That position was pivotal in the alleged fraud scheme, which remained active for a decade, from 2014 to 2024.
According to investigations, Mejías is believed to have manipulated the dealership's accounting system to issue 486 fraudulent checks in the name of her husband, Miguel González (54 years old), and her son, Ángel González (28 years old).
The total amount embezzled amounts to $1,047,188, according to the Miami Police Department, as reported by the local media.
The nationality of the three arrested individuals has not been revealed at this time.
This is how the fraud worked
According to Mike Vega, spokesperson for the Miami police, Mejías was pretending that the refunds were directed to legitimate customers of the dealership, but in reality, the checks ended up in the hands of his immediate family.
“She was making a record as if she were returning one thousand, two thousand, three thousand dollars to me, but that check, instead of going to me, was going to her husband or her son. Then the son or the husband would cash the check and keep the money for themselves. We're talking about more than a million dollars,” Vega detailed.
The deception was made possible by their direct access to the accounting system and their knowledge of the internal processes.
In addition to issuing the checks, Mejías later manipulated the accounting entries to conceal the fraudulent transfers and avoid raising suspicions.
The internal complaint that changed everything
The scheme remained under the radar until August 2024, when a colleague from the accounting department filed an anonymous complaint with management.
This prompted an internal investigation that soon revealed irregular patterns in the refund records.
The information was provided to the Miami police, who, after gathering sufficient evidence, issued arrest warrants for the three individuals involved.
The officers arrested Mejías, her husband, and her son last Monday, and they were brought before the Miami-Dade criminal court.
Charges and bonds
The three are facing charges of first-degree grand theft, organized fraud, and conspiracy to commit fraud.
In the specific case of Yuddy Mejías, an additional charge was added for creating false entries in corporate accounting books.
In addition, the judge warned that an additional hearing must be held to determine whether the money used to pay those bonds comes from a legitimate source.
So far, the three remain in custody at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center (TGK), awaiting the corresponding judicial proceedings.
A framework outlining the internal risks
The case has raised alarm among automotive industry entrepreneurs, highlighting how the manipulation of internal processes by employees with access to financial systems can lead to multimillion-dollar fraud.
Brickell Motors, located at 665 SW Eighth Street in the heart of Little Havana, is a well-known dealership in the city and has not made any public statements beyond cooperating with the authorities.
It has not yet been determined whether the company will be able to recover the stolen funds, nor how many vehicles were indirectly involved in the scheme of false reimbursements.
The Miami-Dade County Prosecutor's Office will continue to gather evidence to support the charges while awaiting key hearings to determine whether the defendants will face trial free on bail.
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