Former Sand Cay manager arrested on multiple charges

Former Sand Cay Manager Judy Paul was arrested Monday, April 9 on charges of first-degree grand theft in the amount of $100,000 or more and a scheme to defraud in the amount of $50,000 or more. She was released on $30,000 bond.

A probable cause report alleges that Paul, 48, of Nokomis, stole more than $216,000 and deposited more than 50 Sand Cay checks that were not authorized or justified into her personal account.

Sand Cay hired Paul as general manager in June 2006 at a salary of $70,000. Her duties expanded rapidly, according to police, as the condominium took on a renovation process that resulted in unrelated civil action against the initial contractor.

The report states that Paul “eagerly assumed control of all office tasks while the board became embroiled in the renovation issues. She quickly gained the trust of the board members/owners for her willingness to take on extra work during a time of extreme stress. This enabled her to work without any supervision of her daily duties. This also enabled her to begin an ongoing course of criminal conduct that resulted in the theft of more than $216,000 in business checks alone.”

The first unauthorized check was dated July 2006, while the last was dated September 2009, according to police. The irregularities were discovered during an audit that was stipulated by a Wachovia Bank construction loan agreement.

Paul was fired in January 2010 after the audit revealed inconsistencies.

Police say that Paul issued a sworn post-Miranda statement in which she said that she had a verbal agreement about the checks with Sand Cay Treasurer Joseph DiMario that was known only by the two of them. DiMario denied the allegation in a sworn statement and said that he had never made or discussed such an agreement. Paul also said that she regularly had to pay Sand Cay expenses with personal checks and then reimburse herself, a claim police say records do not support.

A warrant for Paul was issued on both charges in January 2011. Paul’s Nokomis phone number listed on the affidavit was not in service Tuesday afternoon.