Authorities claim that a Philadelphia woman organized a plan to steal a COVID relief check intended for the city of Weston and used some of the money to pay for a Brazilian butt lift and a shopping spree in Bal Harbour, among other things. The woman is currently being charged with three felonies in a Broward County court.
In order to deposit the stolen money back in 2021, Ashley Stibbins-Parker opened a “City of Weston LLC” bank account in Georgia, according to court documents that were made public on Friday.
The 30-year-old Stibbins-Parker is accused of first-degree grand theft, money laundering, and organized fraud.
A special agent with the United States Postal Inspection Service and a detective from the Broward Sheriff’s Office wrote the arrest warrant together. It states that the case is centered around a check for $184,838.72 that the city of Weston received from the Broward County Board of County Commissioners on February 12, 2021.
According to the authorities, the funds came from COVID assistance funds that were allotted by the federal CARES Act.
According to the warrant, the check was delivered to Weston City Hall at 17200 Royal Palm Blvd. but was never received by the city.
Rather, money made its way to a Bank of America account under the name “City of Weston LLC” that opened on March 12, 2021 in Sandy Springs, Georgia, a suburb of Atlanta, according to police.
According to investigators, Stibbins-Parker submitted a phony certificate of organization for “City of Weston LLC” to the state of Georgia four days prior, using Weston City Hall as the major office address.
However, the warrant notes that Stibbins-Parker had residences in Philadelphia and Atlanta, respectively, and was designated as a “registered agent” and “organizer.”
Stibbins-Parker deposited the check on March 15, according to the authorities.
The warrant mentions that Weston City Hall was closed due to the COVID outbreak and that mail was being placed in a collection box outside the building at the time, however it doesn’t specify how Stibbins-Parker is said to have obtained it.
They claimed that on March 24, she took out over $119,000, transferring $40,800 to Jerisha Coburn and $78,500 to Selnik Development LLC, a business whose registered owner is Jahmari Christian Osani.
The warrant details multiple Zelle transactions from March 26 to March 31, including $8,800 that was intended for Princess Ogumgbuaja, a woman from Snellville, Georgia.
On Friday, it was unclear if Coburn, Osani, Ogumgbuaja, or anybody else was aware of the alleged plot or if they would be charged with anything related to it.
Authorities claim that on March 27, Stibbins-Parker took $27,000 out of the Sandy Springs Bank of America branch.
The warrant states that Stibbins-Parker was clearly in South Florida by March 30. On an invoice dated that same day, officials noted that a Brazilian butt lift at a Miramar plastic surgery center cost $6,250. The payment was made with a Bank of America credit card that was assigned to “The City of Weston LLC Ashley Stibbens (sic)”.
According to the warrant, Stibbins-Parker would subsequently take out $1,400 in total from an Opa-locka Bank of America branch on April 1 and 7.
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According to the warrant, Stibbins-Parker purchased tickets on Frontier and Southwest Airlines, respectively, from Miami to Atlanta on April 8 and April 9.
According to the authorities, she also used the money to reserve hotel rooms and go on an opulent shopping trip in Bal Harbour, where she made purchases at Wolford, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Neiman Marcus.
On June 4, 2021, Bank of America would shut the “City of Weston LLC” account, leaving a balance of -$131,888.22.
The warrant continues with specifics on a controlled phone conversation that officials had with Stibbins-Parker on October 19, 2023.
Less than two weeks before she was scheduled to be checked into the Broward County jail on Tuesday, Stibbins-Parker was reportedly arrested recently in Maryland and appeared in court there on June 14.
These documents indicate that she declined to be extradited.
According to jail records, Stibbins-Parker was being held as of Friday afternoon at BSO’s Paul Rein Detention Facility in Pompano Beach on a $200,000 bail. According to the documents, she will have to demonstrate that any money she uses to post bond originates from a reliable source.
A judge barred Stibbins-Parker from submitting a passport application. In the case, she entered a not guilty plea.
