South Florida man stole $174k from Hollywood fire victim, officials say
A South Florida man profited off someone’s “worst day imaginable” by acting as an unlicensed contractor and pocketing $174,000 from the victim of a Hollywood house fire, Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia said Tuesday.
In October 2023, the homeowner hired Cornelius Sentell Osborne to complete restorations and renovations on his property, which had been damaged in a structure fire, according to the Florida Department of Financial Services.
Osborne initially worked with other employees to complete the demolition of interior walls, removal, insulation and general clean-up, according to a probable cause affidavit.
The homeowner gave Osborne $174,000, which he allegedly misappropriated and used for his own benefit before abandoning the job altogether. He left the victim’s house uninhabitable, Ingoglia said.
Department of Financial Services Criminal Investigations officers arrested Osborne in Plantation on March 19 in connection with the scheme, he said. He was on probation at the time for willfully fleeing a law enforcement officer in Brevard County.
Osborne, 45, of Lauderhill, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree grand theft and acting as an unlicensed contractor. He is facing up to 30 years in prison, if found guilty on both counts, Ingoglia said.
The Broward Public Defender’s Office is listed as representing Osborne. A spokesperson did not immediately respond Tuesday to a request for comment.
“He abandoned the project, and then he abandoned the Floridian who trusted him,” Ingoglia said. “He offered them hope, and then he left them holding the bag.”
