Man sentenced to prison for $1.2M fraud, money laundering scheme targeting Hurricane Ian victim

A Naples man who pleaded guilty to a $1.2 million fraud and money laundering scheme that targeted an 85-year-old Hurricane Ian victim was sentenced to four years in federal prison on Wednesday.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice's Middle District of Florida, Luis Emilio Hernandez, 45, was sentenced for wire fraud and illegal monetary transactions.

According to court documents, Hernandez posed as a contractor between November 2022 and February 2024 to fix the victim and her now deceased husband's residence, which was damaged by the hurricane, but he defrauded the couple.

The victim wrote checks to Hernandez for supplies and equipment supposedly needed by the defendant to fix the residence. The checks were never deposited, and they were instead cashed against the victim’s account in amounts varying from $200 to $120,000, and in cashier’s checks payable to automobile dealerships, the release stated.

The memo line for each check was specified for items related to construction. A total of 35 checks were issued to Hernandez that totaled $1,261,019.

According to the Collier County Property Appraiser, no permits were pulled for the residence since Feb. 28, 2018, when a permit for a roof was issued. The next permit was on May 30, 2023, when the residence was demolished.

According to the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Hernandez never applied for or received licensing in Florida.

Hernandez was concealing the funds by laundering money through purchasing and flipping vehicles in trade-ins at car dealerships in the area.

The Lee County Sheriff's Office and the United States Secret Service investigated the case.