May 4, 2026 | Mark Luis Foster

May the Fourth Be With You!  While I’m not a huge Star Wars fan, I certainly would be remiss if I didn’t send that sentiment to you all on this — the fourth day of what is to be a busy month for our network.

So did you catch this little gem in the news?  From the New York Post:

A shady ex-homeowners association president and her husband — who authorities said ran their Miami homeowner’s association like “an organized crime syndicate” — confessed this week to their part in a massive $11 million fraud that drained money from the community’s fund.

Wow.  That could be a mini-series a la The Godfather. 

Marglli Gallego, the former leader of the Hammocks Community Association, and her husband, Jose Antonio Gonzalez, admitted Thursday in a Miami-Dade court to the years-long scheme that prosecutors say ripped off 18,000 people.

Come again? Eighteen THOUSAND people?

“The now-convicted thieves ran the Hammocks HOA like an organized crime syndicate only to benefit themselves, their family and their friends,” [State Attorney]Fernandez Rundle said during a news conference. Their victims were each of the homeowners.”

I always joke at chapter meetings that the now defunct Corporate Transparency Act was supposed to protect us all from money-laundering through our HOAs. Now comes a real-life example of how to do it.

Police launched an investigation into the scheme in 2022 after baffled residents noticed the HOA’s funds mysteriously depleting, according to court documents obtained by The Miami-Herald.

I guess just like The Godfather, you get the whole family involved.

The couple were among eight people — including former board members and Gallego’s relatives — arrested in connection to the plot, in which they created fake companies and vendors to funnel money through the HOA to themselves. Four have been sentenced, while the others are still awaiting trial.

Eleven million bucks from HOAs. If there’s anything to learn, it’s that checks and balances are an important part of what we do.

And to be more accurate:  May the Force Be With Us All.