A woman was arrested for allegedly running an illegal post-surgery recovery home out of a Hialeah apartment where three patients were found, authorities said.
Maria Otero, 42, was arrested Thursday on a charge of operating an assisted living facility without a license, an arrest report said.
According to the report, a Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office detective learned from a Florida Department of Health investigator that an unlicensed post-operative recovery house was being operated out of an apartment in the 18200 block of Northwest 68th Avenue.
The detective went to the apartment and saw Otero walking inside accompanied by a patient in a black robe and black compression socks, the report said.
When the detective searched apartment they found two employees who said they were employed by Otero to give assistance to patients that included bathing, dressing, eating, toileting, personal hygiene, medication, and transportation, the report said.
Three patients were present and were interviewed by detectives, telling them they received the services and were charged between $250 and $300 per night for care they received while recovering, the report said.
Otero, the owner of the unit, had no personal belongings in the apartment and said she moved all her stuff to another location she had just leased, the report said.
The Agency for Health Care Administration confirmed the property wasn’t licensed to operate as an assisted living facility recovery house, the report said.
Otero was booked into jail and later posted bond, records showed.