A woman accused of pretending to be an immigration attorney and taking thousands of dollars from desperate South Florida families is now behind bars, Miami police said.<\/p>\n
Investigators say 50-year-old Maria de Lourdes Van Caneghem targeted immigrants by falsely claiming she could help them get loved ones released from federal detention and begin the process for legal residency.<\/p>\n
One of her alleged victims, Yamila Mederos, spoke with CBS News Miami about what she says happened.<\/p>\n
“She is where she belongs,” Mederos said in Spanish, referring to Van Caneghem’s current stay at the Miami-Dade jail known as TGK.<\/p>\n
Victim says she paid for help<\/p>\n
Mederos told CBS News Miami she gave Van Caneghem a $1,440 money order after being promised help to get her husband released from an immigration detention center and begin the process to obtain U.S. residency.<\/p>\n
According to Mederos, the suspect would only accept cash, money orders or Zelle payments \u2014 often sent to a phone number not registered to the suspect.<\/p>\n
She said the payment methods raised red flags, but she chose to trust Van Caneghem because of the desperate situation she was in.<\/p>\n
“My husband had been detained by immigration authorities after reporting to an ICE appointment,” Mederos said. “She told me she could get him out.”<\/p>\n
Weeks later, Mederos said she stopped receiving responses and went to police.<\/p>\n
Long history of fraud charges<\/p>\n
Miami Police spokesperson Mike Vega said Van Caneghem has a lengthy criminal record.<\/p>\n
“She has approximately 89 charges of fraud, and out of those 89, 12 have been convictions,” Vega said.<\/p>\n
Police confirmed Mederos identified Van Caneghem in a photo lineup.<\/p>\n
When investigators filed the arrest report, they discovered the suspect was already being held at the Miami-Dade jail on a separate fraud case.<\/p>\n
“We do our investigation and find out that Miami Beach arrested her in September for fraud \u2014 for the same thing,” Vega said.<\/p>\n
Court hearing brings new charges<\/p>\n
During a bond court hearing Friday, Miami-Dade Judge Mindy Glazer called the defendant’s name, but Van Caneghem declined to appear.<\/p>\n
Prosecutors told the court additional charges were being filed.<\/p>\n
“We’ve seen her many times before,” a state attorney told the judge.<\/p>\n
Judge Glazer described the case as “another fraud scheme.”<\/p>\n
Court records show Van Caneghem was already on probation until February 2034 at the time of her latest arrest.<\/p>\n
Police urge other victims to come forward<\/p>\n
She now faces new charges, including organized scheme to defraud and grand theft in the third degree.<\/p>\n
Police believe there may be more victims.<\/p>\n
“In the city of Miami, we don’t ask if you are a legal resident or not,” Vega said. “If you are a victim of a crime from this lady or anyone else and you come to the City of Miami, we will treat you as such.”<\/p>\n
Mederos said she knows she will likely never get her money back, but she is relieved the woman accused of taking advantage of her family is now behind bars.<\/p>\n