A former medical employee is accused of stealing the identities of elderly people in a $350,000 scam

Coral Springs, Florida – According to officials, a woman from Coral Springs allegedly stole the sensitive medical records of dozens of elderly patients at the medical office where she worked. She then used the information to assist in a significant financial fraud operation.

According to online jail records, Claudia Jules, 41, was taken into custody by the Strategic Enforcement Team of the Coral Springs Police Department on Tuesday and charged with two counts of utilizing people’s personally identifiable information without their authorization.

Jules was being held at the Broward County Jail on a $200,000 bond while awaiting extradition to Volusia County, where some of the alleged offenses took place, according to the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office.

Coral Springs Police SET squad members captured body camera footage of Jules being arrested in a parking lot while denying stealing the identities. It was unclear at first if she had been in court for the first time on Friday.

Jules’ arrest is the most recent development in a complex fraud case involving the identity theft of 72 persons, including numerous elderly individuals. The victims all shared a common trait, according to authorities from the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office: Jules worked as a patient at a Delray Beach medical clinic from 2016 to 2021.

According to authorities, the fraud probe started in 2021 after an elderly victim in Delray Beach found out that someone had purchased a car at Daytona Kia in Daytona Beach using his identity.

According to officials, the subsequent investigation, known as “Operation Soul Stingers” by the Florida Attorney General’s Office and Daytona Beach Police, found 17 suspected offenders who stole the identities of the 72 victims.

The victims’ personal data was used to open credit accounts, apply for COVID loans, and purchase new cars totaling more than $350,000.

The fraud scheme’s mastermind, Drayton McMillan, has been incarcerated for ten years, according to VSO.

In March, Shaquiledra Johnson, a 28-year-old alleged scheme member, was taken into custody in central Florida.

VSO Financial Crimes Det. Bill Weaver renewed the case and spoke with Johnson after learning of his detention, the agency said. According to officials, Weaver was able to identify Jules as the source of the stolen identities thanks to the information from that conversation and months of additional detective work.

VSO claims that Jules, the alleged ringleader McMillan’s ex-girlfriend, provided him with the stolen identities. Weaver claimed to have discovered through the renewed inquiry that Jules had previously worked in the records department of the medical practice, where she had complete access to the private data of her patients.

VSO claims that McMillan made purchases for himself and Jules using the patients’ identities. According to authorities, the cost of the illegal purchases increased over time.

Jules’s case is being prosecuted by the Florida Attorney General’s Office. Charges have also been brought against other members of the Ponzi scheme.