A 58-year-old woman was arrested Monday after authorities said she stole thousands of dollars worth of jewelry from a 79-year-old client she had met through a neighborhood social media app, Nextdoor.
Maria Esther Hernandez is facing a charge of second-degree felony theft from an elderly person over $10,000. According to a police report, the victim hired Hernandez for a cleaning job after seeing her post on the app on February 6.
The victim paid Hernandez $125 through Zelle. They met at a physical therapy clinic in Miami Beach and then traveled to the victim’s residence in Bay Harbor Islands for the cleaning.
After Hernandez completed the cleaning, the victim noticed that her jewelry was missing. She tried reaching out to Hernandez but was unable to get in touch with her.
Detectives later learned that Hernandez had pawned 15 gold rings at a Miami Beach pawn shop on February 7 and 8, for a total of $3,400. The victim identified the rings as her missing jewelry.
When questioned by detectives, Hernandez confirmed that she had cleaned the victim’s home on February 6 but denied knowing anything about the missing jewelry.
Hernandez was arrested and taken to the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.
