- Police arrested a Florida woman on a felony charge of filing a false public assistance claim.
- They say she posed as her mom to claim hurricane aid, but her youthful appearance raised suspicions.
- Police say the woman claimed to look young because of Botox treatments.
Police in Florida have said a woman applied for hurricane disaster assistance by posing as her mother — and said she looked younger because of Botox.
Investigators allege that Veronica Torres, 44, used her mother’s name, driving license, and Social Security information to apply for the city’s Hurricane Disaster Assistant Program.
Bradenton Police Department said in a statement on Saturday that Torres was charged with a third-degree felony of filing a false public assistance claim.
The city was hit by Hurricane Helene in late September and Hurricane Milton in early October, both of which caused tens of billions of dollars in property damage, widespread flooding, and power outages.
Bradenton Police Department said that Torres had claimed she was forced to move out of her damaged home. It said she requested “approximately $7,967” in relief.
When Torres attempted to pick up her check last Thursday, a city official noticed that she looked far younger than the photo of the woman listed on the aid application, per the police statement.
Torres claimed that her youthful looks were because of “Botox treatments,” but this didn’t convince the city official, who asked her to return the next day, police said.
She returned Friday and was arrested by detectives, they added.
In the aftermath of the hurricanes, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) issued a warning urging Floridians to be alert to fraud or identity theft.
The warning said, “Thieves try to apply for FEMA assistance using names, addresses, and Social Security numbers they have stolen from people affected by a disaster.”
