Accused scammer uses scam proceeds to pay court costs from previous scam charges, officials say

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — A woman who has been repeatedly charged with fraud has been accused again of renting out properties she doesn’t own and making off with the deposits, investigators said.

Catherine Carpenter was arrested this week on charges that she took deposits on a condo she didn’t have the right to rent, which she used to pay court costs from previous scams using the same scheme, officials said.

Carpenter was arrested in 2015 and charged with posing as a maid to clean a Paine Lane home and then stealing $800 worth of appliances and renting the residence to unsuspecting victims.

In that case, she made off with $1,250 in deposits, investigators said.

She was arrested and charged with a similar scam in 2014, court records show.

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In the 2016 case, she posted a Craigslist ad offering a condo on Semoran Boulevard for rent, officials said.

Victims told Orange County sheriff’s deputies that Carpenter, claiming to be the property manager, gave them what looked like valid lease documents and took more than $1,400 in deposits and rent.

The scam started to unravel when the renters became suspicious after Carpenter repeatedly told them that their move-in dates had to be pushed back, investigators said.

She was arrested Monday and charged with scheme to defraud for more than $300 by communication and third-degree grand theft of more than $300.

She was being held at the Orange County Jail in lieu of bonds totaling $7,500.

Cox Media Group