A former Miami-Dade County school board member is accused of misusing funds for personal gain, including buying fake pregnant bellies.
Lubby Navarro, 49, is facing multiple charges, including second-degree grand theft, third-degree grand theft, organized fraud of $20,000 or less, and organized fraud of $50,000 or more, WPLG reported. She was taken into custody on Jan. 11.
The ex-vice chair allegedly spent an estimated $100,000 in 2022 using district credit cards for lavish trips abroad, health products, a sofa, and food, among other items, State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said during a press conference earlier this month. The purchases, some of which were made at major retail stores like Walmart, were unauthorized.
During the presser, Rundle showed photos of Navarro leaving Walmart with shopping carts overflowing with different items. Other purchases she made included household appliances found in her home and, separately, an abundance of gift cards — more than 178 of them.
It has been reported that officials started looking into her spending habits after she resigned that same year, and her purchases raised the eyebrows of a district employee.
“What was discovered was that Navarro’s purchases were not school-related,” Rundle said. “Every dollar stolen and spent by Ms. Navarro is a dollar taken from our school system and therefore stolen from our children and diminishing their possibility of a better future. Lubby Navarro, who had been the vice chair of the school board and had worked for the school system since 2002, knew better. She knew better than to have gone this very pathetic path.”
It was revealed that she spent more than $1,000 on business-class flight tickets on two separate vacations to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, with her mother, and to Las Vegas, Nevada, with her ex-boyfriend. Rundle claims that she also bought goods for his business.
Officials alleged that she used the credit cards to buy silicone bellies to trick her ex-boyfriend into thinking she was pregnant, the Miami Herald reported. In addition, she also reportedly bought Apple Air Tags to track his whereabouts, placing them on his vehicle.
Ben Kuehne, who is representing Navarro, told CBS News that his client “will be exonerated.”
The Catholic University of New Spain announced this week that it is revoking the honorary degree awarded to her in 2019, according to the report.
