An Orlando city commissioner allegedly exploited a 96-year-old woman and stole more than $100,000 from her in a scheme that allegedly lasted several years.
Regina Hill is accused by Florida investigators of obtaining power of attorney over the unnamed elderly victim, which she used to buy a home while financing a lavish spending spree.
In addition to using the woman’s name to obtain a mortgage, she also allegedly spent more than $100,000 on a facelift, perfume, clothes, IV vitamins, a trip to Miami and dental surgery, according to court documents from News 6.
Hill has not been arrested or charged, but is the subject of a state investigation that was triggered when the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) received a tip from one of its employees who had been dismissed.
Orlando City Commissioner Regina Hill (pictured) is under state investigation after allegedly exploiting a 96-year-old woman and stealing more than $100,000 from her in a scheme that lasted several years.
Hill allegedly became the woman’s agent, before exploiting her to obtain a mortgage for a house in Orlando (pictured) in the pensioner’s name.
According to the documents, Hill met the woman in March 2021 in his position as commissioner and aimed to help her improve her living conditions. Within a month, she had become his power of attorney.
She then used her power of attorney to obtain a mortgage for a home in Orlando’s Lake Mann Estates neighborhood without the woman’s consent or knowledge, according to investigators.
Hill’s son and girlfriend are believed to live in the house, while Hill lives in a separate house believed to have belonged to the elderly woman’s parents, and which she spent much of her savings renovating.
She is also accused of accumulating more than $10,000 in debt in the woman’s name.
In her spending spree, she allegedly used the $100,000 to buy luxury brand perfumes and beauty treatments, including dental work and a facelift.
Hill also used the woman’s savings for a New Year’s vacation to Miami and for a large number of intravenous vitamins from a company named Vitalounge, according to the reported documents.
The commissioner’s office did not immediately respond when contacted for comment.
Although she has not been criminally charged, Hill has had numerous other run-ins with the law that reportedly surfaced during her first run for office in 2014.
According to Orlando SentinelNews emerged during her run that she had a criminal record with 21 prior arrests dating back to 1983. The arrests included drug offenses, drunk driving, fraud, and bad checks.
She was also arrested in 2022 in Birmingham for public drunkenness, the outlet reported.
Hill’s son, Rakeem, was also arrested in 2015 when a cache of guns and drugs was discovered in a home he owned at the time, reports WFTV9.
Hill is accused of going on a spending spree with victim’s savings
She reportedly spent more than $100,000 on facelifts, luxury perfumes and vacations
Hill’s son Rakeem (pictured) was also arrested in 2015 when a cache of guns and drugs was discovered in a house he owned at the time.
The court documents reportedly stem from a request from the 96-year-old woman’s attorney to keep Hill away from the woman’s properties and finances.
The petition reportedly led a judge to issue a temporary injunction a week ago, evicting Hill from his home.
FDLE Special Agent Steve Brenton allegedly asked the woman if she signed her power of attorney and said “she remembered signing some sort of document but didn’t understand it and would never have agreed to allow Hill to be a proxy.”
Brenton added that when he reviewed Hill’s spending, “these purchases and/or bank withdrawals exceeded $100,000 and only benefited Hill.”
He said that although his house had undergone renovations, the house the elderly woman lived in needed repairs, but Hill apparently did not spend money to repair it.
The agent’s affidavit stated that before Hill met the elderly woman, she had more than $164,000 in her bank account and a balance of approximately $650. As of October, he had $60,000 left in his bank account and $10,000 on his credit card.
News 6 reported that the FDLE learned of the alleged scheme last year, when a former aide to the Orlando commissioner raised the alarm after they were fired.
The former employee, named Jacqueline Cockerham, said Hill “tormented” her at work, forced her to work long hours and attend to personal matters.
Personal matters included cleaning the elderly woman’s home, which she described as being littered with urine and cat feces.
The city of Orlando released a statement after the investigation was launched, saying it only recently became aware of the allegations.
“The City has been informed of the injunction issued regarding Commissioner Hill,” a city spokesperson said.
“We are not part of the injunction and have no details of the allegations related to it.”