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A Miami-Dade employee who worked 16 years in the county clerk's office was arrested Tuesday on charges of taking money from couples and fraudulently getting them ``quickie divorces.''
Olga L. Avila, 46, a resident of Miami-Dade County and employee of the Miami-Dade County Clerk of the Courts, was arrested in connection to selling her office to people needing assistance in getting a divorce. The Office of the Inspector General and the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office said it began an investigation based on information provided by Harvey Ruvin, Clerk of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit Courts.
According to the arrest warrant, Avila provided people who had no attorneys with a quick divorce for a cash fee of $670. Of the $670 she charged for each divorce, Avila used $364 to pay the required filing fee and kept the remainder. It further mentioned that Avila was involved in falsifying and fraudulently notarizing documents, as well as using her access and friends at the Miami-Dade County courts to expedite the divorce proceedings. According to the arrest affidavit, Avila represented that she could move the divorces through the system faster and cheaper than an attorney. In three of the four cases, Avila came into contact with the victims at her workplace, the Lawson E. Thomas Courthouse Center, which houses the Family Division of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit.
She's been charged with a total of 52 felony counts, and on Wednesday appeared in bond court, where a judge let her out of jail.
Inspector General Christopher Mazzella said that the investigation is continuing and that additional arrests are expected.
"Integrity and honesty are part of the foundation upon which our justice system stands," commented State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle. "No court employees can be allowed to lie and sell their positions of trust in order to put a few dollars into their pockets."
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