Bronson Announces Arrest In Travel Scam
For Information, Contact:
Terence McElroy
(850) 488-3022
May 12, 2009
TALLAHASSEE - Florida Agriculture and Consumer Services Commissioner Charles H. Bronson today announced the arrest of an unlicensed travel agent who allegedly defrauded numerous customers who purchased travel packages but never received them.
Arrested by Bronson’s Office of Agricultural Law Enforcement (OALE) on five counts of grand theft was Nancy Alvarez, 21, of Miami. She was booked into the Miami Dade County Jail on $25,000 bond.
According to investigators, Alvarez, who goes by a number of fictitious names, posted advertisements for Disney vacation packages and Disney World discount tickets on the internet site “Craig’s List” using the business name A Fairy Tale Event. Numerous customers responded to the ads and provided her with personal checks and money orders totaling $7,640.
Authorities claim that despite receiving consumers’ money, Alvarez failed to provide the vacation packages or Disney tickets to her customers.
The case originated from a complaint to Bronson’s Consumer Services Division, which passed it on to OALE. Bronson thanked the Miami Dade State Attorney’s Office for its assistance in the investigation.
The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services regulates “sellers of travel” in Florida, and Bronson encourages consumers to call his department’s toll-free hotline – 1 800 HELP FLA (435-7352) – to determine if a travel company is licensed and to check its complaint history. Consumers who wish to file a complaint against a travel company can do it online at www.800helpfla.com or can use the toll-free telephone number to obtain a complaint form.
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