Florida Woman Who Faked Death After Gambling Stolen $4 Million Gets 10 Years

• Remote worker stole more than $4 million from employer
• Faked death to evade detection
• Sentenced to 10 years in federal prison

A Florida woman who embezzled more than $4 million from her employer and then attempted to fake her own death has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for wire fraud and money laundering.

Madelyn Hernandez, 49, of Lee County, stole $4,199,498.42 from a textile and apparel supply chain company that remains unnamed in court documents.

She worked remotely for the firm for 16 years before she began submitting fraudulent invoices from purported supply companies, directing payments to be sent to her bank accounts.

Faking It

Hernandez was in charge of placing orders with vendors and managing shipping, invoicing, and inventory for the company, which was originally based in New York, before going fully remote in 2019, according to prosecutors.

The fake invoice scheme ran from 2018 to 2024. Bogus suppliers included a shell company named Cape Prints, which Hernandez created in August 2019.

She used the money she stole on “personal expenses and for gambling,” according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida.

Facing investigation, Hernandez sent a message to her employer, posing as a relative, claiming that she had died due to complications from surgery.

Back From the Dead

The company contacted the police, sparking an investigation by the FBI and the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division. This led to the execution of a search warrant at Hernandez’s residence in October 2024 where she was miraculously found alive and kicking.

Hernandez pleaded guilty on January 28 this year and has been ordered to forfeit the $4 million as part of her sentence.